MARYVILLE, Tenn. – A pair of first-half goals pushed the third-ranked Washington and Lee men's soccer team to a 2-1 road victory against Maryville (Tenn.) on Sunday afternoon.
The game remained scoreless until the 19th minute, when a Maryville (0-2) turnover at midfield led to a W&L (1-1) fastbreak. Senior midfielder
Carson Cooley (Frederick, Md. / Urbana) collected a loose ball and passed off to junior defender
Park Bruner (Atlanta, Ga. / Atlanta International) on the right. Bruner then sent a long pass upfield to sophomore midfielder
Weyimi Agbeyegbe (Atlanta, Ga. / Westminster), who faked out his defender to get a 1-on-1 with the keeper. Agbeyegbe dribbled in from the right and finished his shot from close range inside the right post.
In the 32nd minute, following a Maryville free kick, W&L instantly turned defense into offense after a clear from sophomore midfielder
Paul Collins (Dallas, Texas / Tabor Academy) up to senior midfielder
Michael Kutsanzira (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe / Putnam Science Academy (Conn.)). From midfield, Kutsanzira ran around a Scot before returning the ball to Collins with a long pass up the right side. Collins collected from the 18 and tried to cross a pass to a cutting
Willy Hall (Richmond, Va. / St. Christopher's).
The Maryville defense headed the ball away, but Kutsanzira controlled the ball with his chest and hit a one-time, right-footed shot which curved just inside the left post to double the W&L lead.
Maryville cut the Generals' lead to a goal in the 78th minute when first-year forward William Bryan scored on a penalty kick. Bryan beat first-year keeper
Will Joseph (Wilmette, Ill. / New Trier) with a right-footed shot into the bottom-left corner of the frame.
The W&L defense limited the Scots to just one shot attempt over the remaining 12 minutes of the contest, which the Generals blocked.
Kutsanzira's goal came in his season debut, as he and first-year midfielder
Matteo Adler (Cobham, England / ACS Cobham International) led W&L with five shots and two attempts on goal each. Agbeyegbe came in next with three shots, and he put each one on target. Bruner's assist on Agbeyegbe's goal was his first this season and second of his career. Joseph (1-0) played all 90 minutes in goal to earn the win, and he made two saves.
Bryan's goal came on one of his two shots in the contest, while Ndubueze Henry led the Scots' offense with three shot attempts and one on goal. Senior goalkeeper Mykal Manfred (0-2) suffered the loss in goal, but he made nine saves over the 90 minutes of play.
W&L finished the game with a 23-7 advantage in total shots, helped by a 14-1 margin in the first half. The Generals also earned 12 corner kicks on the day to three for the Scots.
The Generals will be back in action on Tuesday when they travel to N.C. Wesleyan for a 4:00 pm showdown with the Battling Bishops.
