Elon Men’s Soccer Phoenix Falls in Overtime to Blue Devils, 1-0

ELON, N.C. – Brian White’s golden goal for Duke in the 98th minute of overtime handed the Elon University men’s soccer team its second consecutive loss with a 1-0 defeat to the Blue Devils on Tuesday night, Oct. 25, at Rudd Field.

BOX SCORE

Elon (7-4-3) lost its second consecutive game for the first time all season and also its second defeat at home in 2016. The Blue Devils won its third straight contest overall and the first at Rudd Field against the Phoenix for the first time since 2008.

The Rundown
Both squads spent the majority of the match feeling each other out for their attack. Elon got the first shot on goal in the contest near the ninth minute with Nicholas O’Callaghan coming up with the attempt that was easily saved by the Duke netminder.

The Blue Devils had a good look on its first shot attempt near the top of the 18-yard area as Brandon Williamson curled a shot towards the top right corner. The ball however sailed high over the bar to give possession back to Elon.

At the end of the opening half, Elon held a slight advantage on shots, 4-2, over the Blue Devils and also in corners, 3-2.

In the 63rd minute, Duke’s Max Moser found himself free near the penalty spot area with a shot moving to the back right corner. The ball however hit the post before the Phoenix could clear it out of harm’s way.

Keeper Matthew Jegier came up big with a save in the 73rd minute. The sophomore was able to get a hand on a shot by Suniel Veerakone that deflected off the crossbar and went out of play for a corner kick, leading to a Blue Devils’ corner. Elon kept the Blue Devils off the board on the following set piece to regain possession.

Elon’s best chance of the night came 82nd minute. Tuki Tayali played a ball on the top of the right post of the 18-yard area and fired a rocket towards the goal. Duke’s goalkeeper Robert Moewes was able to put his hands up to knock it down for the save.

Duke had a couple of chances for the game-winner in regulation in the 85th minute as Jegier stopped a shot by White before the Phoenix defense thwarted another attempt on the rebound. The would match end up going into overtime for the second straight season.

During the majority of overtime, Elon seemed to be the team putting the pressure on the Blue Devils. The Phoenix had a look at a shot in the 92nd minute and earned a corner inside the 95th minute mark. Luke Matthews played the ball with a header off the set piece, but it was again corralled by Moewes.

White provided the game-winner late into the overtime session as the junior was able to maneuver around the Phoenix center backs to face the keeper one-on-one. White finagled around Jegier and fired a low shot from the left post of the six-yard area that went into the back right bottom corner for the golden goal clincher.

Notable
• Elon fell to 1-11-3 all-time in its series against the Blue Devils. Duke has won two straight in the series for the first time since 2009.
• The Phoenix had a slight 10-9 shot advantage over the Blue Devils in the contest with both teams having four shots on goal. Elon also had two more corner kicks than Duke, 6-4.
• Jegier made three saves while going the distance in goal for Elon. His counterpart Moewes made four stops for Duke.
• John Walden made his first collegiate start for the Phoenix and played 35 minutes. Senior Taylor Adler also received his first start of the year and played 64 minutes.
• This was Elon’s final nonconference match of the year as the Phoenix finished with a 4-3-1 ledger outside of Colonial Athletic Association play.

Up Next
Elon welcomes league-leader Hofstra to Rudd Field on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. The Phoenix will also host Senior Night as the program will honor its two seniors, Adler and Will Smith prior to the match.