Newland, N.C.----The Lees-McRae College Bobcats used four first half goals to advance to the finals of the NCAA men’s soccer Southeast Regional with a 6-3 win over the Wingate University Bulldogs Friday night at Avery High School.
With the win, Lees-McRae is 16-2-1 overall and will play Anderson (S.C.) University in the regional finals Sunday at 2 p.m. with the location to be determined. Wingate’s season ends with a 13-5-1 record.
Wingate scored the first goal of the match when
Jack Vundum scored in the ninth minute to give the Bulldogs the 1-0 lead.
Jamie McKenna served a cross that Vundum headed into the net past the Bobcat keeper.
Jamie Bladen answered for Lees-McRae in the 13th minute to tie the match.
Jamie Price played a cross that was brought down by
Richard Guffens to the feet of Bladen, who struck it for the volley and the goal.
In the 14th minute, Lees-McRae got a break on a Wingate own goal to make it 2-1, but scored again in the 38th when
Luke Perry found
David Palmer on the back post. Palmer slammed home the goal to give the Bobcats a 3-1 lead.
Three minutes later, Bladen scored his second goal of the match on a broken play from a corner kick. Bladen corralled the ball and put it away to give Lees-McRae a 4-1 lead heading into the half.
The Bobcats tallied their fifth goal of the contest 46 seconds into the second half when Wingate scored another own goal to make it 5-1. Lees-McRae tallied its sixth and final goal of the match in the 47th minute when
Lee Squires knocked home a penalty kick.
Wingate fought back and scored three minutes later when
Corey McCollom scored on a
Felippe Imperatriz assist. The Bulldogs scored the final goal of the match in the 56th minute when
Luke Mulholland blasted a shot from just outside the 18-yard box for the goal to make the final score 6-3.
Sean Paradise earned the win between the pipes for the Bobcats with four saves and
Joey Calandra made four saves for the Bulldogs. Wingate outshot Lees-McRae 17-14, but Lees-McRae had ten shots on goal compared to Wingate’s seven. The Bulldogs held a 9-2 corner kick advantage.
