WILMINGTON, NC Thomas Campbell broke a 2-2 tie with 9:02 left in regulation as UNC Greensboro ran its unbeaten streak to five in a row with a 3-2 win over UNC Wilmington in non-conference men's soccer action Saturday night.
Campbell's tally, his second of the year, came just 48 seconds after the Seahawks had tied the game with a goal by Daniel Roberts. It ran the Spartans unbeaten string to five straight matches, going 3-0-2 in that span. Despite losing five of their top six scorers from last year, UNCG is now 4-1-2 on the season.
The start of the match was delayed more than an hour by a line of severe thunderstorms in the Wilmington area. That may have contributed to a sluggish first half, with neither team finding the net. But things opened up in the second half.
Jokull Elisabetarson scored the first goal of the game when he converted a penalty kick at 58:48. The junior from Iceland successfully converted a fourth penalty kick this year and his fifth goal of the season after Campbell had been pulled down in the box.
UNCW (1-4-1) tied the score when Indy Smith scored unassisted at 66:40. He collected a deflection off a cross and knocked it home for his first tally of the season.
The Spartans tied the game less than five minutes later. Tim Masters played a short cross from the right side that Chris Ethier knocked home for his first tally as a Spartan and a 2-1 lead. With his tally, Ethier became the eighth different Spartan to record a goal already this season.
Roberts tied the game with 9:50 to play with a blast from 20 yards out. Jon Kearns played a cross from the left side and Roberts knocked it home from there to knot the score.
However, Campbell headed in David Worthen's low cross from left side of the field for the gamewinner at 80:58.
UNCG, which was making its first trip to Wilmington since the Spartans were knocked off by the Seahawks as the No. 1 team in the nation in 2004, held an 11-8 advantage in shots and 7-6 in corner kicks. Nate Berry had two saves for UNCG, while Brock Duckworth had three for the Seahawks.
The Spartans return to action on Wednesday when they conclude their four-match road swing and open Southern Conference play with a 4 pm match at Appalachian State.
AGATE
UNCG........................ 0 3 - 3
UNC Wilmington...... 0 2 - 2
SCORING SUMMARY: SCORING: UNCG Elisabetarson (penalty kick) 58:48; UNCW Smith (unassisted) 66:40; UNCG Ethier (Masters) 71:18; UNCW Roberts (Kearns) 80:10; UNCG Campbell (Worthen) 80:58. Shots: UNCG 11, UNC Wilmington 8. Saves: UNCG 3 (Berry 2; TEAM 1), UNC Wilmington 5 (Duckworth, 4; TEAM 1). Corner kicks: UNCG 7, UNCW 6. Fouls: UNCG 8, UNCW 16.
- UNCG -
