Mountaineers Advance to Sun Belt Semifinals with Win Over Georgia State

Sunday, November 5

Orlando, Fla.

3 p.m.

West Virginia University

13-1-4, 5-1-3

Georgia State

6-7-5, 3-4-2

Team	1	2	Final F
Georgia St.	0	1	1
West Virginia	0	3	3

Mountaineers Advance to Sun Belt Semifinals with Win Over Georgia State

November 05, 2023 07:28 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

By: Adam Grossman

ORLANDO, Fla. – A trio of second half goals propelled the No. 7 West Virginia University men's soccer team to a 3-1 victory over Georgia State in the Sun Belt Championship quarterfinals on Sunday. The Mountaineers advance to the semifinals against the winner of the UCF-South Carolina match on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

Senior Yutaro Tsukada scored a brace with senior Luke McCormick adding the third for the Mountaineers while sophomore Marcus Caldeira collected an assist.

West Virginia outshot the Panthers, 16-9, including a 6-3 advantage in shots on goal. WVU also had a slight 3-2 edge in corner kicks. Senior Jackson Lee also made two saves, none bigger than a diving stop in the first half.

Both teams had a couple of chances in the first 45 minutes, but the score remained scoreless heading into the break. Tsukada had the best chance in the 40^th minute as the Mountaineers earned a penalty on a Panther handball in the box, but his attempt was saved by the GSU keeper.

In the second half, the Panthers took the lead in the 51^st minute, but WVU answered just five minutes later on McCormick's fifth goal of the season, corralling a rebound before firing a shot into the back of the net.

Tsukada put the Mountaineers on top in the 69^th minute, taking a pass from Caldeira before slotting a shot past the keeper and into the back of the net. In the 76^th minute, junior Max Trethewey won a header that went to Tsukada, who took a couple of dribbles before ripping a shot with his left foot from just outside the box and getting it past the diving GSU keeper. Tsukada nearly had a third a few minutes later but settled for the brace.

West Virginia is now 13-1-4 overall this season, reaching the 13-win plateau for just the seventh time in program history.

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