Wake Forest University
Charlotte
Women's Soccer Tops Charlotte 2-0 in Exhibition Opener
8/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Final Stats • Final Stats (PDF)
By Jay Garneau, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeWSoccer)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest women's soccer opened the exhibition portion of its 2014 schedule by defeating Charlotte 2-0 at Spry Stadium on Tuesday night.
It took less than 20 minutes for Pilar Torres to find the back of the net in her first game in Old Gold & Black. In the 19th minute, she took a pass from Kendall Fischlein and beat the keeper from short range to put the Deacs up 1-0.
Fischlein added a goal of her own in the second half to make the score 2-0. Taylor Waters sent a long ball down the middle, and Fischlein beat a pair of defenders and the 49er keeper on her own to put away the finish.
"It was okay, it was a typical first scrimmage," head coach Tony da Luz said. "We didn't have a lot of rhythm; we spent a lot of time defending these first five days so the attacking phase of it - playing on a big field, it takes time. I thought we had some good sequences, a couple good goals."
Freshman Lindsay Preston started in goal for Wake Forest and was tested right away, making a diving save on the first shot she faced just over three minutes in. She finished with five saves to earn the clean sheet.
Youth paid off for Wake Forest, as the Demon Deacons started five freshmen and five sophomores, plus senior Riley Ridgik, in the winning effort.
For Charlotte, Annika McHenry made four saves in goal. Amanda Jones led the 49ers with four shots and a game-high three shots on goal.
The Deacs held the advantage in shots (17-13), shots on goal (7-5) and corners (6-2).
BY THE NUMBERS
• 7: After just three days of training, seven Demon Deacons played the full 90 minutes: Ridgik, Jenna Romano, Sarah Teegarden, Fischlein, Ally Haran and Maddie Brock. "This game was basically a fitness test, and they did really well. I thought physically we were stronger," da Luz said.
• 6: Fischlein took on an attacking role for much of the game, finishing with a game-high six shots. Her hard work paid off with a goal and assist as she led the Deacs with three points.
• 5: Five Deacs played their first games in a Wake Forest uniform. Torres, Maddie Brock, Maddie Huster and Ally Haran combined for four shots, two shots on goal and one score, while Preston posted a shutout in net.
• 2: After a pair of defensive breakdowns, Wake Forest twice needed a save from the goal frame. The 49ers had one shot ricochet off the crossbar and another off the left post in the first half. "We turned the ball over too many times early in the game. They created some turnovers in our half and had a couple good shots...as the game wore on I thought we controlled the game pretty much, so it got better," da Luz added.
• 0: After a rainy day - and pregame warmup - zero drops of water fell during the contest as the sun came out just in time for the preseason opener.
ON DECK
• Wake Forest has two more exhibition contests this week. First, the Deacs will take on Coastal Carolina on Thursday at 7 p.m., followed by another home exhibition contest, this time against 2013 NCAA Tournament qualifier Ohio State on Saturday at 7 p.m. Wake Forest opens the regular season at home against Wright State on Aug. 25.
