Men’s soccer beat Stevenson University 2-1

By: Mason Godek

Staff Writer

The University of Mary Washington men’s soccer team faced Stevenson University at home on Wednesday, Sept. 29. The Eagles were down 1-0 for a majority of the match until the second half where, in the last ten minutes, they managed to pull out two goals to win the game. 

“I think we have a really strong young group, we battled every minute,” said junior business administration major and team captain Josh Kirkland. 

The varsity men’s soccer team played throughout the majority of the match down a header from an error on defense. They managed to persevere in the final minutes of the game. With nine minutes and 29 seconds remaining in the game, the ball fell to junior business administration major and midfielder Gabe Francesconi. He proceeded to flick the ball over a Stevenson defender and volley the ball into the corner of the net to put the Eagles back in the game 1-1. 

Shortly after the first goal, the Eagles kept pushing, receiving chance after chance to score. After the ball went out to the right wing, junior business administration major Abel Luwis sent a cross into the bottom corner of the net to put the Eagles in the lead.

The Eagles led 16-5 in shots, and senior Eagles goalkeeper and marketing major Ken Kurtz had a notable performance. Kurtz made key saves throughout the entire game that limited Stevenson to one goal.

“I think we can beat any team with our intensity and composure,” said Kirkland. 

When asked his opinion about this year’s team, Assistant Coach David Yates said, “The team this season is vastly different from what we had two years ago. It’s a really young group; about 80 percent are new guys.” 

Yates didn’t notice anything the Eagles could have done differently.

“As far as doing things differently I really don’t think that there’s much that we would look to do,” said Yates. “It’s all about creating habits and doing things that we are used to.” 

In the stands, Mark Finn, an Eagles supporter, shared his thoughts about the team this season. 

“They look good,” said Finn. “They’re young, but they’re coming together, and a game like this shows that they’re building. Coming back from down and getting two nice goals late to win. It was nice.” 

Mark Finn’s son, Jordan Finn, is a senior business major and midfielder on the team. 

“It’s high-quality soccer, it’s a good opportunity to get to know the other kids on the team. It’s a lot of fun,” said Mark Finn.

As the Eagles continued their win streak with two wins in a row, they faced an upsetting CNU 1-2 loss on Saturday, Oct. 2. In 2019, the Eagles won the CAC Championships at the CNU home field, and Yates was excited to return to the field.

The team bounced back in their face-off with Catholic University on Oct. 5, when they won 2-0. 

The next home game for the Eagles is Oct. 9.