Erin Reeve Staff Writer
After defeating No. 3 Wake Forest and other good competition, like Furman, the Niners rose to No. 15 in the nation..
This Friday night, they played the George Washington Colonials in a game to prove their worth.
After 15 minutes of play, it was evident that the Niners had brought the same intensity they had in recent games that had pushed their ranking to the top.
Within those 15 minutes, the Niners had dominated the Colonials’ half, and upon being rewarded two penalty kicks, had finished their opportunities to make the game score 2-0. Seniors Adam Gross and Luke Exley had stepped up to put the shots away.
The Niners and the Colonials had both been capable of these advantages, as Charlotte gave up seven fouls, and the Colonials had eight. But the difference had been finishing through and seizing the opportunity that came from Exley and Gross.
At the 21 minute mark of the game, Gross finished his second goal of the game from a deflection of Exley’s shot.
After a high kick by George Washington’s Seth Rudolph, Josh Norwood was sent to the ground with stomache pain. Donnie Smith quickly replaced Norwood, and Exley took the free kick for the Niners.
After failing to give him the required ten yards, Exley sent the ball straight at Rudolph. Rudolph fell to the ground, and is given respective revenge, after his high kick to Norwood.
Jason Hawes took a corner kick to a crowded goal of Niner offensive and Colonial defensive players. The ball hit Gross, and then Owen Darby, who finished with a goal. Gross was a touch away from scoring his third goal of the game, and eventually came up one goal short of a hat trick at the end of the game.
“Addie (Adam Gross) might be having a word with Owen,” Charlotte head coach Jeremy Gunn said.
At the end of the first half, Charlotte had already doubled the Colonials in shots on goal. With ten shots to the Colonials’ five, the Niners had good reason to be on top. But their attacking game had not come easily to them. With Andres Cuero hurt and out of the starting rotation, the Niners had to make quick adjustments to prepare.
“Our attacking had to change,” Gunn said.
Nevertheless, the Niners followed through with the attack, and finished the second half with two goals.
The first goal was a quick one, after only five minutes from kick off. The goal was put away by Donnie Smith, who had received an assist from both Gross and James.
Winning balls in the air and putting pressure on their defenders and the goalie kept the ball in the Niner’s possession, and eventually into the back of the net.
“We kept them on their back foot,” Gunn said.
A strong challenge in the air sent Issac Cowles to the ground, and a Colonial on to the bench with a red card.
Fired up, the Niners scored their final goal of the game soon after. A cross by Isaac Caughran set Jennings Rex up for a goal, making the final score of the game, 6-0.
Charlotte travels to St. Louis this Saturday to take on the Billikens.
Be the first to comment on this article!