Wake Forest University
1-1-0, 0-0-0
Bucknell University
0-2-0, 0-0-0
Wake Forest Downs Bucknell for First Win of 2021 Season
8/29/2021 9:38:00 PM | Men's Soccer
The Demon Deacons put together a complete performance to score a 2-0 victory over Bucknell on Sunday night.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Wake Forest's (1-1-0) No. 7 ranked men's soccer team got back to its winning ways on Sunday night, as the Demon Deacons emerged victorious over Bucknell (0-2-0) by a final score of 2-0 at Spry Stadium.
Junior Omar Hernandez opened the scoring for the Demon Deacons with a left-footed shot that found the bottom corner of the net in the 11th minute.
Then in the second half, the Deacs continued to put the pressure on the Bison. In the 51st minute, senior Kyle Holcomb doubled Wake Forest's advantage, as some lovely build up play between redshirt junior Jake Swallen and sophomore Prince Amponsah, sent the San Marcos, Calif., native through on goal.
The Demon Deacons' defense picked up their first clean sheet of the season. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Cole McNally was unoccupied most of the night, only having to face two shots.
Five Deacs made their season debuts and freshman Tareq Shihab saw his first collegiate action.
How It Happened
-
Hernandez got the Deacs on the board first with a brilliant left-footed finish into the bottom corner. Set up by Holcomb, who slalomed through two defenders before giving it to Hernandez.
-
Holcomb almost put the Deacons up 2-0 in the 15th minute, but his shot rattled the crossbar.
-
Wake Forest went into the halftime break with a one-goal lead.
-
Holcomb added to the Deacs tally with a goal in the 51st minute. Swallen fed him a perfect pass and Holcomb buried the attempt.
-
McNally and the defense registered their first shutout of the season, only allowing two shots.
-
The Deacs dominated offensively, outshooting the Bison 16-2 and forcing the Bucknell keeper into nine saves.
Demon Deacon Details of Note
-
Holcomb earned his 30th career start and jumped into the top-25 all-time for career points (49).
-
Junior Takuma Suzuki earned his 20th career start.
-
Hernandez earned his 15th career start.
-
Sophomore Garrison Tubbs appeared in his 15th career match.
-
Swallen and sophomore Hosei Kijima made their season debuts and were in the Starting XI.
-
Shihab made his collegiate debut in the 37th minute.
-
Sophomore Oscar Sears saw action for the first time during the 2021 season, coming into the match in the 68th minute.
-
Junior Sebastian Scrivner logged his first minutes of the season in the second half.
Muuss' Musings
"Thought it was a pretty good team performance. We needed to bounce back from a tough day on Thursday. I thought the guys managed it from the first minute to the 90th minute. We had a little bit of a spell midway through the first half, where I made a lot of changes to try to keep the freshness of the group up and then they fought to find the game again. I think whenever you go into a college soccer match and your goalkeeper doesn't have to make a save, that's a pretty good performance."
Up Next
Wake Forest will conclude a three-match homestand to open the 2021 season next Saturday when the Demon Deacons host Cornell. It will be the Big Red's first official match since the 2019 season.
Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will air on ACC Network Extra.
Team Stats
Omar Hernandez (1)
Assisted By: Kyle Holcomb , Jake Swallen
GOAL by WFU Hernandez, Omar Assist by Holcomb, Kyle and Swallen, Jake.
10:33
Kyle Holcomb (1)
Assisted By: Jake Swallen , Prince Amponsah
GOAL by WFU Holcomb, Kyle Assist by Swallen, Jake and Amponsah, Prince.
51:54
