Playing in their last non-conference match of the season, the Davidson men’s soccer team scored early and scored often, striking on a season-high four goals, all of which came in the first half, to take a 4-1 victory over Presbyterian Friday evening at Alumni Stadium.
“We tried some new things tonight, and that was able to create some offense for us,” said senior defender Cameron Griffin. “Once we had success, it gave us the energy and the confidence that we could do something on offense, which I think provides a boost going into the rest of conference play.”
Sophomore Yannick Pilgrim was the beneficiary of one of those chances, scoring his second goal of the year courtesy of a breakaway shot in which he took a Chip Sanders punt and ran away from the Presbyterian defense to creat a one-on-one matchup with the goalkeeper, against whom he fired a low shot into the right side of the net to give the ‘Cats a two-goal advantage.
One of the bright spots for Davidson was the ability of their offensive attackers to find open space in the PC defense, which opened up passing lanes for cuts through the penalty box area by fellow Wildcats. One of those situations resulted in the ‘Cats third goal at the 20:36 mark, when Caskey brought the ball into the box in the middle of the field, then swung a pass to an open Josh Zipin on the right side, where Zipin was able to put away his first career goal. The assist was Caskey’s team-leading third of the season, and also put him at the top of the squad with nine points overall.
The Wildcats executed one of the most textbook plays of the season on the way to their fourth goal, which came at the 41:15 mark of the first half. Davidson took possession and was able to create a three-man breakaway, with a trio of ‘Cats converging on the Presbyterian goalkeeper. Freshman Mark Millard controlled the ball into the box, then passed it over to Charlie Reiter, whose shot from 15 yards out found the back of the net for his first goal of the year, and Millard’s inaugural point as a collegiate.
While much of the attention was paid to the Wildcat offense, the defense played one of their best matches of the year, holding the Blue Hose scoreless save for one goal scored on a free kick from just outside the box that was taken before Davidson had a chance to set its wall.
Sanders, making his first career appearance in goal, made the most of the start with five saves, and a number of stops before Presbyterian could get a shot off. He also added an rare goalkeeper assist when his long punt into the PC zone set up Pilgrim’s goal.
Caskey led all players with a game-high four shots taken, including three that were on goal, to go along with his goal and assist. Senior Whitey Bolan, freshman Kyle Engle, and Millard each had a pair of scoring attempts on the night, with six other Wildcats contributing to the team’s 16 total shots.
“I’m really happy for our guys,” said Davidson head coach Matt Spear. “They deserve this and it was great to see them smiling and enjoying the winning feeling.”
Davidson will now turn its focus back to Southern Conference competition, when they play in the first of their final three SoCon matches this Sunday at Appalachian State. Kickoff between the Wildcats and Mountaineers is set for 3:30 p.m. from Boone, N.C.