Shorthanded WVU Falls at No. 13 New Mexico
October 01, 2014 10:49 PM | General
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“It’s unfortunate that a referee’s decision changed this game 16 seconds in. We’re terribly disappointed to come out in such a big game and have the center official make the game a disadvantage for us with 89:44 remaining,” coach Marlon LeBlanc said. “We were hard done by tonight, but this team will be resilient and come back stronger on Sunday evening.”
West Virginia falls to 5-5, while New Mexico improved to 6-2-1. The Lobos outshot the Mountaineers, 22-7, including 10-2 in shots on goal.
It only took a minute for the home team to get on the board as Ben McKendry converted a successful penalty kick just 16 seconds in. Junior Francio Henry was called for a handball inside the box and sent off with a red card. McKendry converted to the left of senior goalkeeper Lee Johnston, who dove the opposite direction.
Junior Ryan Cain notched his fourth goal of the season in the 18th minute to tie the match at 1-1. A New Mexico defender attempted to play a pass back to goalkeeper Patrick Poblete, but it went past Poblete and Cain raced to put it in the empty net.
Niko Hansen gave the Lobos a 2-1 lead in the 23rd minute, sliding it past Johnston’s left after receiving a through ball from Chris Wehan.
Wehan made is 3-1 in the 35th minute with his fourth goal of the season. James Rogers drew defenders in the box and slid it through to Wehan, who easily placed it by Johnston.
In the 38th minute Kevin Correa scored to make it 4-1 after beating multiple WVU defenders and beating Johnston on the inside to the far left post.
Sophomore Jack Elliott nearly cut the deficit in the 42nd minute, but had his header following a corner kick blocked and cleared.
In the 55th minute Johnston made the save of the match on a point-blank, one-timed shot by Hansen.
Riley McGovern added another New Mexico goal in the 63rd minute to bring the score to 5-1. McGovern took a shot from the left wing that went off the far post into the back of the net.
McKendry added a second goal to make it 6-1 in the 65th minute following a through ball by Sam Gleadle. McKendry got past the WVU defense and beat Johnston one-versus-one.
West Virginia will return home for a match against Duquesne at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 5. The match will begin at 7 p.m. For links to live stats and a video stream of the match, visit WVUsports.com. Fans can follow the action through social media by following @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter.
