Wake Forest Athletics
Nike Carolina Classic Opens Season for No. 2 Deacs
8/31/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Aug. 31, 2007
Chapel Hill, N.C. - The second-ranked Wake Forest men's soccer team will open the 2007 regular season Friday evening at the Nike Carolina Classic, hosted by the University of North Carolina.
The Demon Deacons will open play with No. 21 Old Dominion on Friday at 5 p.m., followed by Monmouth on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
During pre-season play the Deacons defeated Furman 2-0 on the road and Cincinnati 2-1 in Winston-Salem.
The Deacons' 2006 season ended in the semifinals of the College Cup, when UC Santa Barbara edged WFU in a shootout following a scoreless game and scoreless double overtime. The squad, who topped the rankings during the regular season, finished 18-3-4 overall.
"We learned some very important lessons during the post season last year," Head Coach Jay Vidovich said. "It wasn't how the guys wanted to finish and I know they are extremely eager to pick up where we left off and keep building from there."
Old Dominion wrapped up preseason play with a 3-1 win over American University. The Deacons last met ODU in the second round of the 2005 NCAA tournament, where Wake pulled out a 2-1 victory. Wake leads the ODU series 9-2-0.
Sunday's game will be the first time Monmouth and Wake have met on the pitch. In 2006, the Hawks finished 14-4-3 and most recently suffered a 2-0 loss to Hoftra in pre-season play.
Complete Game Notes
Complete Deacon Season Preview
Nike Carolina Classic Tournament Central
