March 8, 2011
NORFOLK, VA-- Led by the play of Yannick Smith, Chris Harmon and Tim Hopkinson, theODU Soccer Monarchs captured their first two matches of the Spring Season with victories over VMI and the University of Richmond. Here is a recap of those games.
ODU vs. VMI 2/27/11The Soccer Monarchs opened their spring season on February 27th with a home match against VMI in front of a crowd of over 500 fans. ODU did not disappoint them. In the first half ODU dominated in possession but were unable to find the back of the net. The second half saw more of the same until sophomore Yannick Smith was able to finish off a cross from fellow sophomore Chris Harmon. Chris Harmon added to the lead just ten minutes later with a goal of his own. Overall it was a good opening game for the Monarchs.ODU vs. University of Richmond 3/2/11
The Soccer Monarchs travelled up to Richmond, VA to play its second match of the spring on March 2nd against the University of Richmond. The Monarchs were ready to play from the first whistle. The Monarchs had a few great scoring chances but were not able to capitalize until a penalty kick halfway though the first half. Freshman Tim Hopkinson finished off the rebound from his penalty kick to givethe Soccer Monarchs a 1-0 lead as they headed into halftime .
The second half opened up with Richmond winning a corner kick. A Richmond player was able to get his head to the ball and evened up the score at 1-1. The Soccer Monarchs came right back and regained the lead when Tim Hopkinson found the back of the net for the second time. The Monarchs kept the pressure on the rest of the game adding to the score late with a goal from freshman Placide Buduri. The final was a well deserved 3-1 victory.
The Monarchs return to action on March 19 at 5 p.m. against the Richmond Kickers inRichmond, Va.