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Press Release written by Mitchell Coll
NEWARK, Del. - - The Wilmington University men's soccer team extended their unbeaten streak to 10 games as they scraped by the West Chester University Rams, 1-0, in the nonconference matchup Wednesday afternoon at the WU Athletics Complex.
The first half of action ended in a scoreless tie, but the Wildcats (8-2-4) defiantly had their fair share of chances. The Wildcats had eight shots in the first half, with five on goal.
Bas Markus stopped the first chance by either team in the opening minutes. The Rams earned a free kick roughly 20 yards out, and Markus found himself in the perfect place to collect the easy save.
Yohan Kim tested West Chester's keeper Daniel Good early with a right-footed shot 18 yards out that had some movement to the shot. Good was able to collect it, however, for the easy save.
In the 8th minute, the Wildcats had a tremendous opportunity to get on the board, but Marcus Hedemann was called offsides. Tyler Guadagno controlled the ball on the right side in the box and located Hedemann's attempt would have been just off the mark, as it hit the crossbar, but tremendous pressure early from the Wildcats.
Yohan Kim earned a free kick for the Wildcats in the 10th minute on the left side of the field, outside the 18-yard box. Richard Thompson elected to take the attempt for the 'Cats. Thompson's shot the ball with his right foot and attempted to beat Good to the far post, but Good made the save.
The Wildcats closed the half with three corner kick opportunities in the 41st and two in the 43rd. However, the Wildcats couldn't put away any of the chances. Ryuga Uchigashima and Max Norden took the corners.
In the second half, the Wildcat's first chance was created by Tyler Guadagno as Guadagno crossed the ball into the box, but it was headed away by the Rams for a Wildcat corner. Guadagno was then able to attempt a shot, but it was blocked. However, Deshawn Bernard was in the right place at the right time as the deflection fell to his right foot. Bernard ripped the ball and connected with his right foot as well as he possibly could. Bernard's shot hit the left corner of the crossbar in the 51st minute.
The Wildcat's offensive pressure earned them yet another corner in the 65th minute. Yohan Kim stepped over the ball and the Wildcats in a single file line at the top of the 18. Kim's ball was flicked onto the far post by Hedemann, and Malthe Hannesbo was left unmarked inside the six. Hannesbo connected with the ball first and found the top right corner of the net to put the Wildcats up 1-0.
Defensively, after the Wildcat's goal, they were able to minimize any chance the Rams had at scoring an equalizer. The Wildcats fended off two back-to-back corners in the 66th and 67th minutes. The Rams could only attempt two more shots in the half; both were high in the net.
The Wildcats outshot the Rams 15-8 in the contest and held the advantage in corner kicks at 9-6. Bas Markus made one save to pick up his second lone shutout of the year.
The Wildcats will welcome Felician University to the WU Athletics Complex this Saturday, October 15th. Kickoff will be at 2:30 in the CACC Conference matchup.
