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NEWARK, Del. - - It was tough to find room in the compacted field, but the 11th ranked Wilmington University men's soccer team broke through in the second half to defeat Bloomfield, 2-0, to cap Homecoming on Saturday at the WU Athletics Complex.
The Bear (1-5-1, 0-1 CACC) sank into the defensive zone for the majority of the game, making it tough for the Wildcats (7-0-1, 2-0 CACC) to find the space they usually use to create scoring opportunities. But after a scoreless first half, the Wildcats finally broke through in the second half, getting goals from CACC leading scorer Shawn Genus in the 75th and 79th minutes.
Genus had an opportunity early in the game on a free kick, but his shot didn't dip quite enough, hitting the crossbar and bouncing out of play in the ninth minute. The Wildcats outshot the Bears, 7-1 in the first half, and earned more corners, 3-0, but they went into the break with a scoreless draw.
The field began to open slightly in the second half, as Bloomfield started to go on the attack. But the Wildcats were still struggling to find the final piece of the puzzle until the 75th minute. Shoki Yoshida received a long ball over the top down the left side. He took the ball to the touch line, turned it back and found Genus at the top of the box. He got the ball on his right foot and fired a shot to the far post on the ground, putting the Wildcats on the board, 1-0, with his eighth goal of the year.
Moments later, Dimitris Passalis played a through ball down the middle to a hard charging Genus. His initial shot was saved, but the rebound bounced up and over the goalkeeper, allowing Genus to run onto it and tap it into the empty net for his ninth of the year and the 2-0 lead in the 79th minute.
It was the second shutout in a row for Konstaninos Parisis and the Wildcats, and third in the last four matches overall. The team now holds a 0.73 goals against average on the season.
The Wildcats will take to the road for their final nonconference match of the year, as they take on Millersville on Wednesday night. The opening whistle is set for 7:00 p.m.
