Bulldogs Blank Radford 2-0 in Big South Conference Play
September 26, 2009 | Men's Soccer
Radford, Va. - In what was a game hampered by heavy rain and wet field conditions, Gardner-Webb men's soccer team got an early goal and a late goal on its way to picking up a 2-0 shutout victory on the road at Radford in Big South Conference play.
With the win the Bulldogs improve to 5-1 on the season and move to 2-0 in conference play, while the loss drops Radford to 2-3-1 on the year and 0-1-1 in the Big South.
As heavy rainfall fell from the sky for most of the match, the Bulldogs did not wait long to get on the scoreboard, as in the 14th minute redshirt-senior Gerard Hefferon sent a cross pass to fellow teammate Romeo Kabanda who put a clean header square into the net from just outside of the goal box to put the Bulldogs up 1-0 early.
The goal was Kabanda's second goal of the season, while the assist was Hefferon's second on the year.
Outside of the early goal, the two teams played a very even first 45 minutes of play, as Radford held a slight advantage in shots, 3-2, saves 1-0, and in corner kicks 3-1. Yet Kabanda's goal was the difference in the first half, as Gardner-Webb held the 1-0 advantage at the halftime intermission.
The second half started out the same as the first half ended, as neither team could get any offense going over the first 40 minutes of play.
However, the torrid Gardner-Webb offense broke through in the 86th minute, as this time Hefferon did it himself, firing a shot past the Radford keeper Ryan Taylor to put the Bulldogs up 2-0 with less than five minutes to go in the game.
Hefferon's insurance goal was his fifth goal in only six games thus far this season.
The GWU defense, which was dominant for the majority of the match, kept the Highlanders from getting a shot off in the final four minutes of play, giving the Bulldogs a 2-0 win.
For the game, GWU put seven shots on goal on its way to outshooting the Highlanders 8-6 for the match.
Gardner-Webb keeper Trent Kozman picked up the win, as the junior needed to make only one save to pick up his third shutout of the season.
The Gardner-Webb men's soccer team returns home on Wednesday night, as Coach Setzer's squad will host High Point at 7 p.m. at Greene-Harbison Field on the campus of Gardner-Webb University. The game will also be broadcast over the internet via the Big South Network and can be accessed by going to www.bigsouthsports.com.
###
| Box Score - Gardner-Webb 2, Radford 0 |
