Cedarville, OH. – The Wheeling University Men’s Soccer team (0-1, 0-0) kicked off their season on Saturday night in Cedarville, Ohio. They battled Cedarville University, who qualified for the 2022 NCAA Division II National Championships last season, and battled the entire 90 minutes. Unfortunately, they fell to the Yellow Jackets 2-0 but the offense found its groove towards the end of the contest.
Early on, the Cardinals offense got off to a slow start as they were outshot 2-0 over the first five minutes of play. Their first shot came courtesy of Harry Martin in the eighth minute and went down as the first scoring chance for either team in the game. Unfortunately the shot was blocked and it would be the lone shot that the Cardinals got off in the half. 12 minutes later, Cedarville attempted a corner kick in the 20th minute and used it to create their first goal scoring opportunity as they took a 1-0 lead. Austin Aaron got the start in net for the opener and faced a lot of work in the first half. The Yellow Jackets knocked off nine shots in the first half and Aaron made two saves on the three shots he faced on net. His work in the net kept the Cardinals in the game and they went into halftime trailing 1-0.
In the second half, the Cardinals offense got more involved, and they ended up outshooting the Yellow Jackets 8-5. The Cardinals got the first chance in the second half when they took a corner kick. The ball found its way to the front of the net and Salem Mwelwa had a chance to capitalize. Unfortunately it went wide right and the score remained 1-0. Cedarville got on the board for their second goal of the day in the 48th minute and extended their lead to 2-0. In the final 10 minutes, the Cardinals had two different scoring chances. Freshman Cole Congson took a shot on the net that was saved by Cedarville in the 80th minute, denying him his first career collegiate goal. Then, as time was expiring, sophomore Richard Afolayanka had a chance in front of the net and he shot it wide right. That would be the last shot for Wheeling and they ended up falling in their season opener 2-0.
Freshman Diego Buenano led the offensive effort with three shots on the day. Harry Martin and Richard Afolayanka followed right behind him with two shots each, putting one on goal. Cole Congson added a shot on goal and Salem Mwelwa added the final shot of the night. Austin Aaron had a solid night in net, facing five shots throughout the night and making three saves while allowing two goals.
The Wheeling University Men’s soccer team returns to action on Wednesday, August 31st, for their MEC opener against Notre Dame College at 4 PM.