BOX SCORE
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Radford found the net three times in the second half and cruised by UNC Asheville 4-1 in Big South men's soccer action Saturday afternoon at Greenwood Soccer Field.
The Highlanders, who are 3-0 in league play for the first time since the 2005 season, improve to 5-3-2 overall, while UNCA falls 3-7-1 and 1-2-0.
“This was a very solid league road win,” said Radford head coach
Marc Reeves. “We scored some very good goals and defended strongly at key moments.”
At the 19:20 mark, freshman
Luis Grande (Caracas, Venezuela / U.E. Colegio Los Arcos) put the Highlanders on the board when he tracked down a rebound and put it away for his second goal of the year.
In addition to scoring the first goal of the contest, Grande had a number of great scoring chances in both periods.
Just 37 seconds into the second half, senior
Mike Handlin (Opal, Va. / Liberty-Bealeton) scored the eventual game-winner and put the Highlanders up 2-0 with his third strike of the season.
Shortly after the Bulldogs cut the deficit to 2-1 on a goal by Colton Ashe Paschall in the 73rd minute, Radford's
Iyiola Awosika (London, England / Aylesbury Grammar) answered with a header off an
Anthony Payne (Manassas, Va. / Osbourn Park) cross to push the advantage back to two goals, 3-1. The goal was Awosika's team-leading fifth of 2010.
In the 84th minute, senior
Camden Brown (Knoxville, Tenn. / Karns) netted his third goal in as many contests with a brilliant header of his own to give the Highlanders their largest lead of the game, 4-1.
Bernardo Ulmo (Sao Paulo, Brazil / South Kent), who set up Brown's late strike, just missed scoring a goal of his own, but was unlucky on a free kick from the edge of the box.
“We got good contributions from many players, especially down the middle of the field,” Reeves commented.
The Highlanders, who are unbeaten in six of their last seven contests, finished with a 14-12 edge in shots, including eight on goal.
Through three Big South contests, Radford is outscoring league opponents by an impressive 10-2 margin.
Radford will conclude its three-game road swing with a 7 p.m. contest at High Point Wednesday evening.
