LYNCHBURG, Va. – Sophomore
Spencer Furman netted the lone goal on the night to propel the Washington and Lee men's soccer team to a 1-0 win over Lynchburg in Saturday night's ODAC championship game, the eighth ODAC Tournament title in program history.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Furman's goal came in the 53rd minute when the Generals (13-3-4) earned a throw-in deep inside Lynchburg (12-3-4) territory. The throw was booted out of the box, but it came right back to sophomore
Matthew Jenkins on the right side. Jenkins then fired a cross back in, senior
PJ Ryan flicked the ball past the keeper at the near post, leaving Furman with a wide-open net and an easy finish from inside the six-yard box.
The Hornets' got a chance to tie the game in the 63rd minute when a cross came into the box from the left side. An attacking player headed the ball down towards Zach Whalen inside the six, but Furman was there to disrupt the timing of a shot attempt. Whalen tried to shoot, but misfired, as the ball remained underneath his boot. The ball was then poked free by the teamwork of Furman and senior
PJ Ryan, where W&L keeper
Will Joseph pounced on the ball to avoid further danger.
Another dangerous Lynchburg chance came in the 78th minute when a W&L turnover at midfield led to and in-box feed to Pat Figaro, who used one touch to put himself in behind the defense. In a last-ditch effort, W&L senior
Asa Tuke slid in from behind and managed to nudge the ball loose and right to Joseph.
Neither side got another shot off after that, and the W&L backline was able to catch Lynchburg in an offside position in the 83rd minute. In the closing seconds, the Hornets had an attacking throw, but Tuke booted the ball back up field. A final chance for Lynchburg came into the box, and the ball was headed goalward, but straight into the arms of Joseph as the final horn sounded.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Furman's goal was his second of the season, while Jenkins (5) and Ryan (1) both picked up assists on the play. Joseph played all 90 minutes between the posts for the Blue and White and made two saves.
Lynchburg's Manzi Shalita was the only player for both teams to take multiple shots in the game, as he finished the night with two. William Casey and Evan Pask took one shot each and both attempts were on goal. Lynchburg keeper Thomas Viscuso matched Joseph with two saves across the 90 minutes of action.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
The Generals earned their eighth ODAC Tournament championship in program history with Saturday's win, and it is their second in the last three seasons. W&L also secured the ODAC's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament in what will be the program's ninth consecutive trip to the national tournament.
W&L's win on Saturday night marked their 16th consecutive game without a loss, which is tied for the longest single-season streak in program history (2021) and tied for second-longest overall unbeaten run (2018-19).
The ODAC All-Tournament team was announced following the conclusion of the game. As the winning team, the Generals led with four players in Furman, Ryan, Jenkins and senior
Weyimi Agbeyegbe.
TEAM STATS:
Shot attempts were at a premium throughout the game, as the Hornets finished with an 8-3 advantage in total attempts. Three corner kicks were taken in the game, two by the Generals and none by either team in the second half.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will find out who and where they play in the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament on Monday at 1:30 p.m. The NCAA Selection Show will air on ncaa.com.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
