Pedro Figuiera scored on a header midway through the first half
as Wingate University blanked Tusculum College 1-0 in South
Atlantic Conference men's soccer action at Pioneer Field Sunday
afternoon.
Figuiera's goal at 27:28 gave the Bulldogs (5-2-0, 3-1-0 SAC) the
victory over the Pioneers (2-4-0, 1-2-0 SAC), whose four defeats
have each come by a one-goal margin. Wingate, the defending
Southeast Region champions, entered the season ranked 12th in the
NSCAA Division II poll and climbed to as high as fifth before
losses to Lees-McRae and Lenoir-Rhyne last week.
The physical match between the teams featured 29 fouls and eight
yellow cards, but few dangerous scoring chances. Each team was
credited with two shots on goal in the match, with Wingate
finishing with a 10-7 advantage in shot attempts over Tusculum.
In the 28th minute, the Bulldogs' Alex Nelson delivered a cross to
the far post, where Figuiera headed home his second goal of the
season for a 1-0 Wingate lead. The Bulldogs nearly took a 2-0 lead
in the 32nd minute, but were flagged for offsides to negate a goal.
In the 39th minute, Wingate's Shaun Gadsby put a shot off the far
post, and the teams went to intermission separated by a goal.
Wingate nearly scored again in the 55th minute, as a shot by Peron
Da Silva got behind Tusculum keeper Victor Ohlin who had come out
to challenge the play. However, the Pioneer defense cleared the
ball over the back line to maintain the 1-0 deficit.
The Pioneers applied pressure in the final 15 minutes, but Bulldog
keeper Sanjit Kang made saves on headers from Tyler Linkous and
Cody Kammerzell. Tusculum had one last chance on a direct kick from
25 yards with five seconds left, but the Wingate defense knocked
down the blast and time ran out.
Kang finished with two saves in goal for the Bulldogs, while Ohlin
was not credited with any saves for the Pioneers. Wingate had a
slim 3-2 edge in corner kicks and were flagged six times for
offsides to five for Tusculum.
Tusculum will host Milligan on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Pioneer Field
in a non-conference match.
