Braves Hit The Road To Face Wingate On Wednesday
PEMBROKE – Coming off a 5-0 shutout victory over host Barton on Monday evening, the UNCP men's soccer team will continue on the road to battle region rival Wingate in a 7 p.m. kickoff on Wednesday evening in Wingate at the WU Soccer Complex.
Sam Miles registered his 10th and 11th goals of the season as he posted the first two goals of the game en route to leading the UNCP (8-3-1) to the win over the host Barton Bulldogs on Monday evening.
Miles put the Braves on the scoreboard with less than two minutes into the game on a header which was passed from the right side by Shaun Herselman before connecting on a deflected pass in the 25th minute by Jeff McDonald.
Defender Stuart Rodgers registered the third goal of the game, and his second of the season, on the assist by Herselman which Rodgers headed into the back of the net at the 32:50 mark. The Black and Gold entered halftime leading the Bulldogs with a 3-0 lead.
The final two goals occurred less than six minutes apart as Alex Antonesu and Adam Smith grabbed assists on the finished goal by Martin Tomter in the 73rd minute. Antonesu had his opportunity on goal as he returned a deflection by Barton and sent the ball back into the net past the Barton goalie.
UNCP's scoring offense is ranked third nationally along with fourth in total goals, while Miles is ranked 30th in points per game with 1.91.
Wingate (4-7-0) enters the matchup on the winning side of things after going 1-1 during the week. The Bulldogs fell to Newberry, 2-3, on Wednesday before defeating Brevard, 2-1, on Friday. Newberry scored a pair of goals in the first half to lead the Wolves past Wingate. The Bulldogs cut the deficit with goals by Joao Delgado and Tom Poole.
In the victory over Brevard, forward Peron Da Silva scored the match-winner in the 58th minute to lead the Bulldogs past Brevard. Leading the Bulldogs with seven goals is Da Silva, while Zach Muchuca has registered three goals. Goalkeeper Julian Garcia has recorded a 3-1-0 record in goal and recorded 21 saves in his more than 565 minutes of action.
UNCP and Wingate will meet for the 25th time on Wednesday in a series controlled by the Braves. The Black and Gold will bring a 13-11-0 series advantage going into the game, but Wingate captured the victory over the Braves in the last series matchup. Last season, visiting Wingate used a 65th minute header to score the game's only goal as the Bulldogs shook off a phenomenal outing by UNCP goalkeeper Ryan Hanson to post a 1-0 victory over the Braves in the season opener for both sides at Varsity Grounds.