BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – The Gardner-Webb men's soccer team earned the #3 seed for the upcoming Big South Conference tournament and are set to host the sixth-seeded Radford Highlanders on Sunday night.
The 'Dogs clinched the three seed with a 2-1 overtime victory over Presbyterian on Saturday, November 2. In the regular season, finale, Gardner-Webb battled Winthrop to a 1-1 draw and finished the year 8-7-2 overall and 5-2-1 in Big South play. The tournament seed is the highest for the Runnin' Bulldogs since 2011 when they were the #2 seed and fell to Liberty in the championship match.
"I am proud of the way our guys worked to secure home field advantage for the quarterfinals," said head coach Tony Setzer. "We know that the intensity increases when the tournament arrives and that we'll have to give our best against a very good Radford squad that ended the regular season on a high note.
Gardner-Webb finished the regular season with wins in two of its final three matches, including a 5-0 rout of in-state rival UNC Asheville on October 26 and an overtime victory at Presbyterian to start November. The draw with Winthrop was the team's first tie since a 2-2 draw with the Georgia State Panthers on September 17.
Oskar Wang (Neshollen, Norway / Vormsund NTG Kongsvinger) led Gardner-Webb with eight goals and four assists for 20 points in regular season play. Pedro Benito (Cadiz, Spain / IES Maestro Padilla) was second on the team with five goals, while Jorge Salgado (Brion A Coruna, Spain / Ies de Amea) and Abel Gebrekiros (Austin, Minn. / Iowa Lakes CC) each scored four.
Wang, Salgado and Gebrekiros ended the regular season portion of the schedule in a three-way tie with four assists each. In goal, Daniel Husa (Begen Norway, Fyllingsdalen) finished the year with a 7-7-2 mark and 60 saves. Freshman Mallel Rios (San Diego, Calif. / Kearney HS) played two matches in reserve of Husa and earned his first collegiate win at George Mason.
Radford completed the regular season with a 5-10-1 overall and 3-5-0 record in league play. The Highlanders earned the final sport in the tournament by virtue of a 3-2 overtime road win over the Longwood Lancers in Wednesday's regular season finale.
The Highlanders were led by Mouhamet Thiam's five goals and three assists in 16 matches. Four additional players scored multiple goals for Radford, but Thiam was the only player to reach double-digit points with 13. In goal, Joseba Incera earned the decision in all but two matches. He finished the season 5-8-2 with a 1.71 goals against average.
Earlier this season, the 'Dogs and Highlanders met on Radford's home pitch, and Gardner-Webb left town with a 2-1 overtime victory. Oskar Wang put the Runnin' Bulldogs ahead in the sixth minute, but the Highlanders equalized in the 55th minute. Neither team could net the game-winner in regulation, but Laurits Lillemose ended the contest in the 97th minute with a shot into the left corner of the net.
#3 Gardner-Webb will battle #6 Radford in Greene-Harbison Stadium on Sunday, November 10 at 6 p.m. The winner of the match will advance to the semifinals and will travel to #2 High Point on Wednesday, November 13. Sunday's action can be seen live on ESPN+ with Fabian Fuentes and Brendan Boylan on the call.
