Petersburg, VA - The Johnson & Wales men's soccer team split a pair of road matches on the weekend, winning 9-0 at USCAA rival Mid-Atlantic Christian at Elizabeth City, NC, on Saturday before dropping a 2-1 heartbreaker at Richard Bland College on Sunday in Petersburg, VA.
The Wildcats (7-1, 5-1 USCAA) had eight different players find the back of the net against Mid-Atlantic Christian, led by two goals and an assist from freshman striker Jalen Jackson.
Five different players scored their first collegiate goals, with Ariel Morales, Jacob Till, Dominic DiGiacomo, Jean Paul Gutierrez, and Andrew Sanchez all opening their accounts on the season.
Alexis Soriano and Matthew Barriga were the other scorers on the day. Pablo Morera added a pair of assists while Jackson, Till, Gutierrez, and Sam Fanning were each credited with one.
"It was nice to be able to get so many different players involved," said Wildcats head coach James Drzewiecki. "The guys did a good job of taking the steam out of the game early, controlling the possession, and getting their teammates involved."
The weather - and field conditions - took a turn for the worse the next day at Richard Bland College, with both teams struggling to find their footing in the rainfall brought on by Hurricane Joaquin.
Johnson & Wales would capitalize first, as Jonathan Arellano took advantage of a slip up in the Richard Bland defense in the ninth minute, dribbling past the goalkeeper and finishing for the early advantage.
Late in the second half, however, the Statesmen would equalize after a deflection fell to the feet of Eduardo Quintanilla for an 18-yard strike.
The Wildcats had several golden chances to take the lead in the second half - most notably when Jalen Jackson beat goalkeeper Ciro Labrada and forced a pair of goal line clearances from the Richard Bland defense.
The Statesmen would instead capitalize on the good fortune with just minutes remaining in regulation, as Bryce Dietrich finished a rebound following a John Lowes save in the 88th minute for the winner.
"It's disappointing for the boys not to win, but it was a good match for our young players," said Drzewiecki. "It took us a while to adjust to the field conditions and play more direct than we typically do. Both teams were very even, and we need challenges like that to grow as a team. All credit to Richard Bland, they dealt with the conditions well and proved they're a quality side.
"We're very grateful to both Mid-Atlantic Christian and Richard Bland for working with us to get these matches in. It would have been easy to give up on them early in the week with the weather reports we were getting, and they stuck with us to make it happen."
With several weather-related cancellations earlier in the season, the Wildcats are currently working to reschedule several matches for the next two weeks. Currently, the next scheduled match is at Oxford College of Emory University in Oxford, GA, on Friday, Oct. 16. Kickoff will be at 4:45 p.m.
