Penalty Kick Proves to Be the Difference in 2-1 Loss at Wofford
September 01, 2012 | Men's Soccer
Spartanburg, S.C. - Gardner-Webb's Chris Davis posted the Runnin' Bulldogs' first goal of the season midway through the first half, yet a Wofford penalty kick and a second goal late in the first half pushed the Terriers to a 2-1 win in day one of the Big South/SoCon Challenge Friday night in Spartanburg, S.C.
The loss drops GWU to 0-3 on the year, while Wofford improves to 1-1 on the season.
Wofford tried to get on the scoreboard first in the third minute of the contest, as the Terrier's Ryan Hurst put a shot on frame which was stopped by Gardner-Webb goalkeeper Scott Krotee to keep the match scoreless early.
The Terriers continued to put pressure on the Gardner-Webb defense over the next 15 minutes, as the home team tallied three more shots putting a second one on frame in the 15th minute which again was deterred by Krotee.
GWU's first shot attempt came in the 22nd minute, as redshirt-senior defender Jon Ole Reinhardsen put a header on target which was hauled in by Wofford goalkeeper Andrew Drennan at the last minute to keep the Runnin' Bulldogs off the scoreboard.
Less than a minute later, senior midfielder John Sargent blasted a shot from 25 yards out that was heading straight for the right top corner of the goal, but was punched away at the last second by Drennan to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a corner kick.
Off the corner kick, freshman defender Bryce Wells got to a loose ball in front of the goal and put a shot on frame which was blocked. The rebounded ball was chased down by Davis who fired a shot off that found the back of the net to put Gardner-Webb up 1-0 midway through the first half.
The goal was Davis' first of the season, while the assist was Wells' first of his career.
The Terriers looked to even the score up five minutes later, as Tuner Almond fired a shot off wide in the 27th minute and Alex Hutchins forced Krotee to make another save in the 28th minute to help the Runnin' Bulldogs maintain the 1-0 lead.
In the 30th minute, the Terriers would tie the score up at 1-1, as a foul in the box by a GWU defender gave the home team a penalty kick which Hutchins converted on, knotting the score up at one goal apiece.
Wofford took the lead in the 42nd minute, as Hutchins scored again, this time on a shot from 10 yards out in front of the goal putting the home team on top at 2-1 heading into the halftime break.
In the second half both the intensity and physicality from both teams increased, as neither team wanted to give ground to the other over the final 45 minutes of play.
GWU's Marius Hammersmark put a shot on frame less than a minute into the second half only to have Drennan corral the attempt and keep the lead safe for the Terriers at the moment.
Over the next five minutes it was the Terriers turn to try to score, as Connor Davis had back-to-back headers hauled in by GWU's Krotee, who followed up with yet another save in the 57th minute on a another scoring chance by Hurst.
Gardner-Webb attempted to knot the score up once more in the 58th minute, as midfielder Satoshi Tatsumi had his shot halted by Drennan, who made five saves on the night in goal for the Terriers.
The next 20 minutes saw more fouls, 10 between the two teams, than shots, until freshman Craig Swaby blasted a shot which sailed over the head of Drennan and hit the top of the crossbar in the 79th minute, just inches away from tying the match up at 2-2.
Refusing to quit, the Runnin' Bulldogs again tried to score the equalizer late in the contest, as Swaby put another shot on frame in the 87th minute, while Reinhardsen would hit the crossbar with his shot attempt only 30 seconds later deep in Wofford's defensive third.
Krotee, who faced a total of 19 shots on the night, recorded a season-high nine saves on the night in the loss, while Drennan earned his first win of the year.
Reinhardsen led the Runnin' Bulldogs with two shots, one of which was on goal, while Swaby also posted two shots in the loss.
Gardner-Webb was outshot 19-10 for the contest, the third straight match in which the Runnin' Bulldogs have been outshot, while the two teams combined for four yellow cards in the highly heated contest.
Gardner-Webb (0-3) will return to action on Sunday afternoon, as the Runnin' Bulldogs will take on Georgia Southern at 1 p.m. on day two of the Big South/SoCon Challenge in Spartanburg, S.C.
###
| Box Score: Wofford 2, Gardner-Webb 1 |
