HIGHLANDERS DROP 4-1 DECISION TO UMBC

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RADFORD, Va. - The Radford men's soccer team dropped a 4-1 decision Saturday at Cupp Stadium to No. 23 UMBC. Jamie Summers notched his first goal of the season, which tied the game at 1-1 midway through the first half, but the Retrievers struck three times in the second half for the win.

"UMBC is definitely undefeated and ranked for a reason," RU head coach Marc Reeves said. "They are a talented, hard-working, and well-coached group."

Stephen Ho opened the scoring in the 19th minute for the Retrievers. Ho forced a turnover near midfield and dribbled to the right side and slice a 15-yard shot across the face of RU keeper, Dane Wilson that found the corner of the net near the far post.

The Highlanders, however, responded quickly. Less than 90 seconds later Joe Mayer found the head of Jamie Summers with a perfect cross to the back post, and Summers buried the ball in the back of the net for the equalizer. The teams headed the halftime lockerroom tied, 1-1.

Despite being outshot 8-2 in the first half, the Highlanders maintained a greater portion of the ball possession in the first 45 minutes, but that reversed in the second half. UMBC kept consistent pressure on the RU defense throughout the final 45 and that led to three second-half goals and the 4-1 victory.

"We hung in there in the first half," Reeves said. "But our second half performance in terms of effort, energy, and the details of the game was simply not good enough."

The Retrievers got goals from Ho, Oumar Ballo, and Kadeem Dacres to provide the margin of victory.

Radford (1-2-1) travels Friday to Asheville, N.C. to face Georgia Southern in a neutral site contest. UMBC improves to 5-0-0 and extended its unbeaten streak to 14 games (11-0-3).

Reeves said his team needs to stay connected as a group and be more resilient to get prepared for their upcoming games against GSU and Howard next weekend in Asheville.

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