BOX SCORE

HIGH POINT, N.C. – A day after both Luis Grande (Caracas, Venezuela / U.E. Colegio Los Arcos) and Iyiola Awosika (London, England / Aylesbury Grammar) were named to the all-conference squad, the duo lifted Radford to a 2-1 victory over fourth-seeded Liberty in the opening round of the 2010 Big South Men's Soccer Tournament Thursday at Vert Stadium.

"This was a good game with two teams battling hard to keep their seasons alive,” said Radford head coach Marc Reeves. “I thought we competed well in all areas of the field, but especially in midfield.”

Fifth-seeded Radford (7-8-3) advances to the semifinals for the second straight season and will meet the winner of No. 1 High Point / No. 8 UNC Asheville tomorrow evening at 7 p.m.

Grande, one of two Highlanders selected to the all-freshman team, gave his club the early 1-0 advantage with his third goal of the year, a blast from 30 yards out in the 24th minute.

Voted to the first-team with senior James Leith (Herndon, Va. / Oakton), Awosika made it a two-goal game when he put away a loose ball in the box off a long throw in at the 62:49 mark. Fellow junior Brian Gwanzura (Harare, Zimbabwe / Harare) was credited with the assist on Awosika's team-leading 10th goal of the season.

Two minutes after Awosika's eventual game-winner, the Highlanders had what appeared to be their third score of the contest taken off the board, when Awosika was flagged for offsides prior to putting away a Mike Handlin (Opal, Va. / Liberty-Bealeton) shot that caromed off the post.

Handlin wasn't the only Highlander to hit the woodwork as Carter Mills (Culpeper, Va. / Culpeper County) headed one off the frame in the 30th minute.

“We created some great chances and were unlucky not to score more goals. We now have to recover quickly and prepare hard to be ready for another tough semifinal opponent," Reeves said.

Radford's defense and goalkeeper Joey Dennis (Manassas, Va. / Osbourn Park), who recorded six saves on the night, kept Liberty (10-7-1) off the board for more than 89 minutes.

The Flames only goal of the contest came from Darren Amoo with just 49 seconds remaining.

Like their first meeting earlier this season, the teams finished deadlocked in shot attempts with 13 each, while the Highlanders held a 6-3 advantage in corner kicks.