By Miles Hayford | 10/23/24 11:08pm
Junior August Guile runs with the ball downfield in a game against Charlotte on Oct. 23. Elon lost 2-0.
Despite a strong start to the season, Elon men’s soccer dropped its fourth straight loss after falling to the University of North Carolina, Charlotte 2-0.
The match began with stout defense on both sides. Both teams struggled to advance into the other’s territory. After 10 minutes had passed, redshirt junior Ryan Manna had the first shot of the game, but Charlotte’s stalwart goalie Leo Stritter — who has nine shutouts this season — blocked it.
Then, the Charlotte 49ers found its offensive identity, getting a multitude of corner kicks. At the 23rd minute, Charlotte struck. Thanks to miscommunication by Elon’s defense, Charlotte forward Grant Stewart notched the first goal of the game.
That’s where it began to get tough for the Phoenix to climb out of the deficit. Against Charlotte’s nationally ranked defense — the team is first in goals allowed per game with 0.5 — the Phoenix’s offense stalled. After two early shots in the opening minutes, Elon struggled to advance deep into Charlotte’s territory.
A primary cause for this lack of offensive output was the absence of the team’s co-leader in goals and assists, senior Scott Vatne. Vatne wasn’t in the starting lineup, a rare occurrence, because of his recent physical play. Vatne, who had three yellow cards going into the game, is two cards away from a one-game suspension. Elon elected to limit their star’s playing time as the postseason approaches. Vatne later subbed in for the first time at the start of the second half.
The Phoenix got its offense going in the final minutes of the first half with a pair of promising shots by Manna and senior Petro Klishch, but it failed to amount to an equalizer before halftime.
Vatne finally came into the game as the second half began, with the hope that his presence would spark the offense. However, Vatne’s presence failed to provide anything extra that would close the gap between the Phoenix and the 49ers. Vatne only finished with two shots.
Charlotte continued where it left off, scoring again four minutes into the second half. Charlotte continued to get shots off and dominated possession time and control of the ball for the start of the second half.
Head coach Marc Reeves said he believes the team did well in Vatne’s absence, but the early goal in the second half diminished the effect Vatne could have had.
“Scott coming into the game was trying to give us a boost, but giving away the goal early in the second half was annoying because it put us a little bit out of contention,” Reeves said. “But we did have some moments where we scared them a little bit and could have turned it into a much closer game if we grabbed one.”
For the remainder of the second half, the two teams traded possession frequently. But Elon failed to keep control of the ball when it got the chance to. Whenever the Phoenix got the ball, Charlotte defenders swarmed and smothered them, taking the ball back often. Charlotte played an aggressive style of defense that got them the ball often but did award them 14 fouls.
Reeves complimented Charlotte’s defense and said it was hard to play against them.
“They’re a really well-coached, disciplined team that doesn’t make many mistakes along the back line, and they compete,” Reeves said. “I thought we did a good job. The possession was bang even, 51-49% difference. They had 5 saves and we had 3, and the 2 goals are annoying to give up because they’re preventable.”
A few late shots by graduate student Victor Stromsten and Vatne gave the Phoenix hope, but the 49ers’ strong defense prevented any late goals and gave Charlotte their ninth shutout of the season.
The loss continued a troubling pattern for the Phoenix as it dropped its sixth loss in its last seven games. However, Elon played some of the nation’s best in this stretch, facing six teams with at least seven wins. Reeves attributes their string of losses to their strength of schedule.
“We want to give our guys good exposure, and that’s why we’re playing teams like UNCG, and Duke and Charlotte, who are really good,” Reeves said. “So when you do that, you have to be close to perfect, and you have to play really, really well. I think we’ve played okay in some of those games, and tonight, I thought we played really well.”
Elon only has two regular season games remaining, including its final home outing at 7 p.m. on Oct. 26 against Northeastern University. As the postseason rapidly approaches, Reeves said he believes these late games against top tier opponents like Charlotte and Duke can help the team prepare for postseason play.
“We hope it puts us in a good mindset,” Reeves said. “Every play matters, and you got to compete like crazy, and you got to have some real quality in the way you do things. Because when it’s conference tournament time, those moments are massive because they alter the game — and alter whether you keep advancing and playing, or your season ends.”
Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe joined Elon University students in McKinnon Hall on Oct. 23 for a town hall discussion hosted by the Student Government Association. Alongside Burlington City Manager Craig Honeycutt and Alamance Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Reagan Gural, Sharpe addressed questions and concerns from students — with the event aiming to strengthen the connection between the university and the local community. The discussion also provided a platform for students to engage with local leaders and explore ways to collaborate on community issues.
Despite a strong start to the season, Elon men’s soccer dropped its fourth straight loss after falling to the University of North Carolina, Charlotte 2-0. After 10 minutes had passed, redshirt junior Ryan Manna had the first shot of the game, but Charlotte’s stalwart goalie Leo Stritter — who has nine shutouts this season — blocked it. That’s where it began to get tough for the Phoenix to climb out of the deficit. Against Charlotte’s nationally ranked defense — the team is first in goals allowed per game with 0.5 — the Phoenix’s offense stalled.
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