Sunday, August 24
Winston-Salem, N.C.
7 p.m.
Wake Forest University
1-0-0, 0-0-0
2
vs
1
UCF
0-2-0, 0-0-0
1
2
F
UCF
0
1
1
Wake Forest
0
2
2
No. 6 Demon Deacons Notch Season Opening Victory Over UCF
8/24/2025 10:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer
After dominating the early stages of the contest, the Demon Deacons scored a pair of goals in the final 15 minutes of the match.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The No. 6 Wake Forest men's soccer team opened the 2025 season on a high note, defeating UCF, 2-1, Sunday evening at Spry Stadium.
After a goalless first half that saw the Demon Deacons (1-0-0) out-shoot the Knights (0-2-0) 9-4, the Deacs broke the deadlock with two goals during the final 15 minutes of the match.
Sophomore Ryan Belal opened the scoring for Wake Forest in the 75th minute, capitalizing on a cutback from senior Basit Umar on the end line for his fifth-career goal. The goal came after Umar picked it off a UCF defender.
The Deacs doubled their lead seven minutes later as junior midfielder Jeffrey White carried the ball from midfield before unleashing a rocket into the top left corner from just outside the box for the second tally of his career.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Jonah Mednard earned his first-career start in goal for the Demon Deacons, recording six saves in the win.
In the midfield, junior Jose Perez shined across 81 minutes of action in front of the centerback duo of sophomore Mason Sullivan and junior Travis Smith, Jr., who both went the full 90.
Eight players made their Demon Deacon debuts as transfers Tate Loretnz, Harvey Sarajian and Ethan Subachan joined sophomore Jojo Davila and freshmen Alfred Debah, Chandler Young, David Nguema and Copeland Berkley.
With the win, the Demon Deacons remained unbeaten all-time against the Knights at 5-0-1, including a perfect 5-0-0 record at home. Additionally, Wake Forest has now won eight of head coach Bobby Muuss' 11 season openers with the program.
How it Happened
Since Bobby Muuss became head coach prior to the 2015 season, Wake Forest has created the most difficult environment in college soccer at Spry Stadium each matchday. With Thursday's victory, the Demon Deacons are now 112-19-12 at home under Muuss.
The 112 victories are the most in the country over the 11-year span:
For the 36th time in the program's 45-year history and the eighth in Muuss' 11 seasons as head coach, the Demon Deacons opened the season with a victory: The season-opening victories for the Deacs under Muuss are:
"As always, we had a phenomenal crowd out at Spry. I say it all the time, but we have the best fans in the nation. We had over 1,000 students out here on a Sunday night before the first day of class. It's just an unbelievable support group we have.
The game itself was scrappy, to be honest with you. I think it was a really good college soccer game between two teams that love to play and two teams that make it difficult for each other defensively with their shapes and their movement with and without the ball. I'm really proud of the way our guys adapted from the cancellation match, but there are things that we learned from that brief opportunity we had to play against Maryland.
Our press was pretty effective when it was good, and it was really good today. When it wasn't good, it wasn't good. Some guys really stepped up to the plate, and our press led to the first goal, and obviously a great individual effort from Jeffrey White to get the second. Disappointed not to have a clean sheet, because I think we exerted a lot of energy at the end there just to try to keep a one-goal lead.
Hats off to UCF, they had a tough weekend as they played against two pretty good teams, but they're going to be up there in the hunt with everybody else. That's a good side right there, and I'm proud that we are starting the season 1-0. That was a goal we had coming into this weekend, so I'm extremely proud. We have a lot to build off of as well."
Up Next
Wake Forest will return to action Thursday at Spry Stadium, hosting Oral Roberts at 5:30 p.m. on ACC Network Extra. The match will be the first of a doubleheader with women's soccer taking on USF at 8 p.m.
After a goalless first half that saw the Demon Deacons (1-0-0) out-shoot the Knights (0-2-0) 9-4, the Deacs broke the deadlock with two goals during the final 15 minutes of the match.
Sophomore Ryan Belal opened the scoring for Wake Forest in the 75th minute, capitalizing on a cutback from senior Basit Umar on the end line for his fifth-career goal. The goal came after Umar picked it off a UCF defender.
The Deacs doubled their lead seven minutes later as junior midfielder Jeffrey White carried the ball from midfield before unleashing a rocket into the top left corner from just outside the box for the second tally of his career.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Jonah Mednard earned his first-career start in goal for the Demon Deacons, recording six saves in the win.
In the midfield, junior Jose Perez shined across 81 minutes of action in front of the centerback duo of sophomore Mason Sullivan and junior Travis Smith, Jr., who both went the full 90.
Eight players made their Demon Deacon debuts as transfers Tate Loretnz, Harvey Sarajian and Ethan Subachan joined sophomore Jojo Davila and freshmen Alfred Debah, Chandler Young, David Nguema and Copeland Berkley.
With the win, the Demon Deacons remained unbeaten all-time against the Knights at 5-0-1, including a perfect 5-0-0 record at home. Additionally, Wake Forest has now won eight of head coach Bobby Muuss' 11 season openers with the program.
How it Happened
- Wake Forest started on the front foot almost immediately, with White and Flax firing off shots within the first 70 seconds of action.
- Flax recorded the first shot-on-goal in the sixth minute as he forced the UCF keeper into a diving stop and earned a Demon Deacon corner.
- Over the first 10 minutes of play, the Deacs controlled 75 percent of the ball.
- White created another chance for Wake Forest as he called the UCF keeper into action once again for his third save of the evening.
- UCF had its first chance of the contest in the 22nd minute, but Smith Jr. cleaned it up with a massive block and kept the match scoreless.
- Rabiu, Belal and Walent entered the pitch in the 24th minute for their official season debuts.
- Debah and Lorentz made their Demon Deacon debuts in the 30th minute as they took the pitch for the first time alongside Torbic.
- With just three minutes to go until the break, Wake Forest had its best chance of the first half as Rabiu played a great ball to set Torbic free with a one-on-one against the UCF keeper, who tipped Torbic's attempt over the bar for a corner.
- The two sides went into the locker rooms scoreless.
- Wake Forest held a 9-to-4 shots advantage over the first 45, including a 4-to-0 edge in shots on-goal.
- The Deacs also controlled 55 percent of the ball and earned three corners.
- White, Flax and Subachan led the team with two shots each in the first half.
- Young and Davila started the second half for the Deacs as they both made their collegiate debuts.
- Torbic logged the first shot of the second half, as he fired an attempt from just outside the box that sailed over the bar.
- Mednard was called into action for the first time as he recorded a massive point-blank save in the 54th minute for the first save of his collegiate career.
- Wake Forest responded with two back-to-back chances in the 59th minute, as Young pounced on the rebound of Umar's shot, but the match remained scoreless.
- The Demon Deacons broke the deadlock in the 75th minute, as Belal tapped in a cut back from the end line by Umar.
- Wake Forest added a second seven minutes later, as White unleashed a rocket into the top left corner from just outside the box.
- UCF got one back in the 83rd minute to make it 2-1.
- The Deacs held onto the 2-1 victory.
Since Bobby Muuss became head coach prior to the 2015 season, Wake Forest has created the most difficult environment in college soccer at Spry Stadium each matchday. With Thursday's victory, the Demon Deacons are now 112-19-12 at home under Muuss.
The 112 victories are the most in the country over the 11-year span:
- Wake Forest (112 home victories)
- Clemson (94 home victories)
- Indiana (93 home victories)
- Virginia (86 home victories)
- Georgetown (84 home victories)
For the 36th time in the program's 45-year history and the eighth in Muuss' 11 seasons as head coach, the Demon Deacons opened the season with a victory: The season-opening victories for the Deacs under Muuss are:
- Wake Forest 2, UCF 1 (2025)
- Wake Forest 3, Grand Canyon 1 (2023)
- Wake Forest 1, UCF 0 (2022)
- Wake Forest 3, Louisville 1 (2020)
- Wake Forest 2, UCF 1 (2019)
- Wake Forest 2, Indiana 1 (OT, 2018)
- Wake Forest 5, Rutgers 1 (2017)
- Wake Forest 1, Santa Clara 0 (2015)
- Belal notched his fifth-career goal on Umar's seventh-career assist.
- White tallied his second-career goal.
- Mednard earned his first-career start and logged six saves in the victory.
- Eight players made their Demon Deacon debuts.
- Ethan Subachan, 45 minutes
- Harvey Sarajian, 48 minutes
- Chandler Young, 29 minutes
- Jojo Davila, 21 minutes
- Tate Lorentz, 18 minutes
- Alfred Debah, 15 minutes
- David Nguema, 8 minutes
- Copeland Berkley, 8 minutes
- Sullivan earned his first-career start.
- Belal made his 20th-career appearance.
- Umar earned his 40th-career start.
- With the win, the Demon Deacons remained unbeaten all-time against the Knights at 5-0-1, including a perfect 5-0-0 record at home.
- The Demon Deacons have now won eight of their 11 openers under head coach Bobby Muuss.
"As always, we had a phenomenal crowd out at Spry. I say it all the time, but we have the best fans in the nation. We had over 1,000 students out here on a Sunday night before the first day of class. It's just an unbelievable support group we have.
The game itself was scrappy, to be honest with you. I think it was a really good college soccer game between two teams that love to play and two teams that make it difficult for each other defensively with their shapes and their movement with and without the ball. I'm really proud of the way our guys adapted from the cancellation match, but there are things that we learned from that brief opportunity we had to play against Maryland.
Our press was pretty effective when it was good, and it was really good today. When it wasn't good, it wasn't good. Some guys really stepped up to the plate, and our press led to the first goal, and obviously a great individual effort from Jeffrey White to get the second. Disappointed not to have a clean sheet, because I think we exerted a lot of energy at the end there just to try to keep a one-goal lead.
Hats off to UCF, they had a tough weekend as they played against two pretty good teams, but they're going to be up there in the hunt with everybody else. That's a good side right there, and I'm proud that we are starting the season 1-0. That was a goal we had coming into this weekend, so I'm extremely proud. We have a lot to build off of as well."
Up Next
Wake Forest will return to action Thursday at Spry Stadium, hosting Oral Roberts at 5:30 p.m. on ACC Network Extra. The match will be the first of a doubleheader with women's soccer taking on USF at 8 p.m.
Team Stats
UCF
WFU
Goals
1
2
Shots
14
16
Shots on Goal
7
7
Saves
5
6
Corners
4
3
Fouls
9
9
Scoring Plays
Ryan Belal (1)
Assisted By: Basit Umar
GOAL by WFU Belal, Ryan Assist by Umar, Basit.
74:02
Jeffrey White (1)
GOAL by WFU White, Jeffrey.
81:19
Kenn Muendo (1)
GOAL by UCF Muendo, Kenn.
82:53
Game Leaders
Shots
3
SOG
3
Goals
1
Assists
0
fwd
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
mid
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder/Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Goalkeeper
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder/Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's SoccerMidfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder/Forward
/ Men's SoccerWake Forest Football Postgame Press Conference (Oct. 11, 2025)
Sunday, October 12
Wake Forest Football Highlights vs. Oregon State (Oct. 11, 2025)
Sunday, October 12
Wake Forest Football | Oregon State Trailer
Saturday, October 11
Wake Forest Field Hockey Inside the Circle: Episode Four
Friday, October 10