Box Score For Immediate Release – 9/18/16 - #050
First-Half Blitz Seals Third Consecutive Ti-'Cat Championship; Brown Named MVP
LYNCHBURG, VA – The Randolph College men's soccer team scored three times in the first half against the University of the South on Sunday, en route to a 4-0 win. The win, combined with Birmingham-Southern defeating Hampden-Sydney, gave the WildCats the title of the Tiger/WildCat Classic for the third-straight year. It is also the second trophy of the season for the 'Cats, after winning the NCWC Fall Classic title last weekend.
The first 20 minutes of the game saw both teams going back and forth. Shots were sent near both goals, with Erick Cortez-Martinez making a nice stop early on. Blake Heartherly also had a good shot off a long throw-in from Cristian Irigoyen, that just missed the net.
However, in the 21st minute, Randolph copied one of its actions from yesterday. Tournament MVP Travis Brown made a run into the box and was pulled down, giving the 'Cats a PK for the second-straight day. Heatherly stepped up again, and fired it home for the 1-0 advantage. The goal proved to be a major momentum shifter, as it would be all WildCats the rest of the way.
Six minutes after the PK, Gabe Krueger ran behind the Tiger backline, and fired the ball past the goalie. It ricocheted off the post right to the feet of Brown. Brown fired home the rebound for the 2-0 lead.
The 'Cats kept pushing and had several good looks. Heatherly sent two different balls from distance that forced tough saves. Brown nearly headed in a corner kick, as well, but the onslaught would result in an eventual third.
A crazy play resulted in a difficult deflection off of the Sewanee crossbar. Eynnar Claros came on it inside the box and shot it at near point blank range at Will Merriman. Merriman made the stop, but it came back to Claros and he would not be denied on the second attempt. The goal was the first for Claros in his Randolph career. The game would go into the intermission with the score at 3-0.
Sewanee tried to gain some momentum after the intermission, but the early corner kick earned amounted to a clearance by the WildCats. Randolph then came down the other end and Brown forced another tough save on a header. The hosts continued looking for the fourth, and would find it.
In the 56th minute, Troy Jurney produced a great run on the left side of the field, getting all the way inside the 18. He sent a low cross to the front of the net that just went past Merriman's outstretched arms and Brown was there to complete his brace.
The rest of the game saw the WildCats do more attacking, but all the needed damage was done, as the contest ended 4-0.
Randolph outshot the Tigers 19-5 on the afternoon, with nine being on goal to only two. Cortez-Martinez cleaned up both and combined with Austin Collier for the shutout. Merriman made five saves in the loss for Sewanee (4-2-1 overall).
For their efforts, the WildCats had five players selected to the All-Tournament team. Joining the MVP Brown on the team was Heatherly, Cortez-Martinez, Irigoyen, and Jurney. Heatherly had two goals, while Jurney had one and an assist. Cortez-Martinez produced two shutouts, with Irigoyen being instrumental on the backline as well. Brown scored two goals, while earning two PK's on the weekend. Merriman was the only Tiger named to the All-Tourney team.
Randolph (4-1-1) will continue its unbeaten-streak at home on Wednesday night. The 'Cats faceoff against Ferrum College (2-5) with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
2016 Tiger/WildCat Classic All-Tournament Team:
Travis Brown, Randolph (MVP)
Cole Burton, Hampden-Sydney
Erick Cortez-Martinez, Randolph
Galen Curry, Birmingham-Southern
Blake Heatherly, Randolph
Cristian Irigoyen, Randolph
Tylan Jones, Birmingham-Southern
Troy Jurney, Randolph
Will Merriman, Sewanee
Landon Moss, Hampden-Sydney
Conner Quiggle, Birmingham-Southern
Josh Wild, Birmingham-Southern
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