WVU Falls in Opener to No. 9 Seattle

Friday, August 26

Akron, Ohio

4:30 p.m.

West Virginia University

0-1-0

Seattle

1-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Seattle	2	0	2
West Virginia	0	0	0

Main-Larmond-Seattle-082616.jpg

August 26, 2016 08:29 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

9 Seattle Redhawks

1-0

Final

West Virginia Mountaineers

0-1

Final Stats

AKRON, Ohio – The West Virginia University men's soccer team played right with No. 9 Seattle in the season-opener on Friday afternoon, but WVU could not find the answer to two first-half goals in a 2-0 loss.

On a warm, sun-filled afternoon at Akron's Cub Cadet Field, the Mountaineers (0-1-0) outshot the Redhawks (1-0-0), 16-13, and held a 4-3 edge in shots on goal. However, it was a pair of Seattle goals in the 15th and 44th minute that was the difference.

“You take a look at the game, and we traded punch-for-punch with them,” WVU coach Marlon LeBlanc said. “We gave up two goals on three shots, and their goalkeeper made four saves. We were there. We gave up that late goal in the first half, which was kind of a backbreaker. At the end of the day, we have to look at ourselves and say 'were can we find goals,' because we had more shots, more opportunities and a lot of set pieces.”

West Virginia had several good chances and held the ball for much of the first half. Ten of WVU's 16 shots, and three of its four shots on goal, came in the opening 45 minutes.

Seattle was held to seven shots in the first half, and both teams had six second-half shots. The lone save made by WVU junior goalkeeper Jose Santos, making his Mountaineer debut, came in the second half. SU's RJ Noll had four saves, three in the first half.

“The box score shows it was a pretty good game, and it was a pretty even match, but they found the back of the net and we didn't. We have to go back to the drawing board,” LeBlanc added. “For us now, it's regrouping and getting recovered for a very good Georgetown team on Sunday. If anything, we showed we can play with a top team like Seattle, now we need to find a way to get a result to go along with the performance.”

The Mountaineers will have a day off to regroup before taking on No. 10 Georgetown at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Live stats from the match in Akron can be found here.

Senior forward Felix Angerer led the Mountaineer offense with four shots, one on goal. Sophomore midfielder Rushawn Larmond came off the bench and had three shots, one coming on goal. Senior defender Jack Elliott and sophomore midfielder Tucker Stephenson both had two shots and one on goal.

After the two teams traded chances in the game's first 10 minutes, including two shots by Angerer, Seattle scored its first goal in the 15th minute. Alex Roldan found the back of the net off a free kick by Jeff Rose from 20 yards out in the near corner.

WVU's next chance came in the 21st minute, when Stephenson's shot went wide after getting the ball from midfield. Four minutes later, junior forward Heath Honold sent a shot high. Angerer's first shot on goal came in the 27th minute.

As West Virginia continued to apply offensive pressure, a corner kick by junior midfielder Joey Piatczyc set up two shots in the 34th minute. The first, by freshman defender Albert Andres-Llop went wide, and Larmond's shot was blocked. In the 36th minute, Larmond had another opportunity from inside the box, but his shot was saved, and Andres-Llop's ensuing shot was blocked.

The Redhawks took a 2-0 lead in the 44th minute of the first half. Joe Harris scored after receiving a cross from across the box on the end line that he tapped past Santos.

Both West Virginia and Seattle had chances in the second half, but neither team could score.

In the 57th minute, Piatczyc had an opportunity that went high, which came in the middle of a stretch that saw WVU control the ball.

Santos made a nice save to keep it a two-goal contest in the 69th minute. Diving to his left, he deflected a hard Seattle shot out of play.

West Virginia made a final push in the final three minutes, which included a header by Elliott and a breakaway shot from 18 yards out by Angerer, but both shots missed the mark.

Following Sunday's contest against Georgetown to close out the Akron Classic, the Mountaineers return home on Saturday, Sept. 3 for a matchup with Princeton. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Admission will be free for all fans. A free live stream, courtesy of CityNet, and live stats can be found on WVUSports.com.

WVU Soccer Scarf ticket packages are now on sale and includes the official 2016 WVU Soccer fan scarf and 10 tickets to be used at any men's or women's home matches during the regular season. Packages are just $30 and are available while supplies last. To order, visit WVUGAME.com or call 1-800-WVU GAME. More information is available on WVUSports.com.

Additionally, single-game tickets for all nine regular-season home matches are now on sale at WVUGAME.com or by calling 1-800-WVU-GAME.

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.