HPU men’s soccer ends regular season with 1-0 win at Campbell

• High Point closed out the regular season with a 1-0 win at Campbell on Wednesday.
• Senior Chris Ramsell scored his ninth goal of the season for the Panthers in the win.
• HPU earns a bye in the Big South Men’s Soccer Championship and will host a semifinal game at Vert Stadium on Nov. 9.

BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The High Point University men’s soccer team finished the regular season with a 1-0 win at Campbell on Wednesday night in Buies Creek, N.C. The win secures the No. 2 seed and a bye in the upcoming Big South Men’s Soccer Championship for the Panthers.

“This team showed a ton of heart out here tonight,” head coach EJ O’Keeffe said. “We played with a lot of grit tonight and were rewarded with the goal by Chris Ramsell early in the second half. Unfortunately, we got a red card and it forced us to really have to fight to defend that lead. This is the best team performance that I think we have had this season. Now we will have a week to rest up and get ready for the semifinals.”

High Point improves to 11-3-4 overall on the season with the win and finishes Big South play with a 5-1-2 mark. It is the fewest losses for HPU in conference play since the team went undefeated in 2010. Campbell finishes the season with a 5-11-0 overall mark and a 2-6-0 record in conference play.

Ramsell broke the scoreless draw with his ninth goal of the season in the 53rd minute of the contest. The Panthers earned a corner kick and sophomore Ryeong Choi delivered a ball to the far post. Sophomore Johnny Fenwick got his head to the ball and headed it back across the face of goal to Ramsell who scored with his first touch.

The Panthers were forced to play the final 29 minutes down a man after a red card to redshirt-senior Nate Lee as a result of a collision in the midfield. Campbell pushed numbers forward, but was stymied by an organized HPU backline and several quality saves by redshirt-freshman Keegan Meyer in goal.

High Point was outshot for the first time this season, 8-7, and allowed eight corner kicks to the Camels, including six after the red card.

Meyer finished with three saves in the contest to pick up his fifth clean sheet of the season. He improves to 10-3-4 on the season and is just the third HPU keeper to record double-digit wins in a season, joining current HPU assistant Michael Chesler and Kody Palmer.

High Point earns a bye straight to the Big South Semifinals with the win over Campbell and the team will host the winner of the Quarterfinal game between No. 3-seed UNC Asheville and No. 6 seed Longwood on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m., in Vert Stadium.