FINAL SCORE: No. 23 Vermont 3, Old Dominion 1
NORFOLK, Va. – The Vermont men's soccer team improved to 5-0 for the first time since 2005 on Friday night with a 3-1 road win over Old Dominion to open the ODU Soccer Classic.
Bernard Yeboah,
Loftur Eriksson, and
Jackson Dayton all scored goals for the 23rd-ranked Catamounts, while rookie
Aron Runarsson posted five saves for his third straight win to begin his career.
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"What a game. The guys went blow for blow with a top team and came out on top," said head coach
Jesse Cormier. "We were struggling to solve a few issues centrally in the first half, which turned into a back and forth transition game. In the second half, we became more compact and organized and couldn't be broken down. On the other side, our attack became more purposeful and we found two goals in the second half and two more opportunities to finish them off."
Yeboah netted his team-high seventh goal in five games with just over a half hour gone in the match. From the end line,
Stefan Lamanna chipped the ball toward the penalty spot and Jon Arnar Barodal directed a first-time touch toward the six-yard box.
Charlie DeFeo then fed Yeboah near the left post on the Monarchs' goal mouth, and the senior's sliding finished tied the NCAA lead in goals.
Old Dominion (2-1-1) answered just before halftime in the 42nd minute when Sebastian Hauret set up Doni Pollock with a back post header for his first of the season, and the teams headed to the locker room 1-1.
Vermont's halftime adjustments at both ends of the pitch paid dividends and led to a 15-2 shot advantage in a dominant second half. Eriksson converted a penalty kick inside the left post in the 63rd minute for his first of the year to put UVM up for good.
Dayton added an insurance goal 12 minutes later, firing a right-footed shot from 30 yards out that deflected off the gloves of ODU keeper Alex Tiesenhausen (nine saves).
Brian Wright picked up his team-best 15th point with his nation-leading seventh assist of the year.
The Catamounts finished the night with a 23-14 edge in shots at the ODU Soccer Complex.
Vermont's last 6-0 start came during the 1977 season, and 1979 was the last time the Cats were unbeaten through their first six games (3-0-3).
UVM goes for six in a row when it closes the ODU Soccer Classic on Sunday (Sept. 11) at 3 p.m. with a matchup against Virginia Commonwealth in Richmond. Links to live stats and pay-per-view video are available by visiting the men's soccer schedule page.
