W.Va. Wesleyan Booters Hold Off West Liberty, 2-1
WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – A late West Liberty surge fell just short here Friday night as West Virginia Wesleyan held off West Liberty, 2-1, in Mountain East Conference men's soccer action under the lights at the West Family Athletic Complex.
Trailing 2-0 after surrendering the second of two second-half goals to the Bobcats (3-3) with less than 15 minutes remaining, Coach Sean Regan's Hilltoppers (2-4) stepped up the offensive pressure.
It paid off in the 82nd minute when Tom Humphreys ripped a drive over the head of Wesleyan netminder Sahil Dhunnookchand and into the back of the net to trim the deficit to a single goal.
Unfortunately for the Black and Gold, that equalizer never materialized. The Bobcat keeper came up with a big save on WLU's Bernardo Vilchis in the 84th minute and a West Liberty corner kick – the Hilltoppers' seventh corner of the second half – went for naught as time expired.
Hunter Dierlam and Nika Monaselidze had Wesleyan's goals in the 49th and 77th minutes, respectively, while Dhunnookchand was charted with three saves to get the win in net.
The Bobcats had a 10-5 edge in total shots but only five were on frame with WLU keeper Noah Underwood collecting three saves.
The West Liberty men return to the West Family Athletic Complex on April 9 to host Alderson Broaddus in a 5 p.m. match.
MEN'S SOCCER
W.Va. Wesleyan 2, West Liberty 1
W.Va. Wesleyan 0 2 – 2
West Liberty 0 1 – 1
Second Half
WVW: Hunter Dierlam (unassisted), 48:05
WVW: Nika Monaselidze (Javie De Ona Garcia), 76:46
WLU: Tom Humphreys (unassisted), 81:47
Match Statistics
Shots: W.Va. Wesleyan 10, West Liberty 5
Saves: W.Va. Wesleyan 3 (Sahil Dhunnookchand 3), West Liberty 3 (Noah Underwood 3)
Corners: W.Va. Wesleyan 1, West Liberty 7