WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Head coach Alan Dawson picked up win No. 200 at Old Dominion as the ODU Soccer Monarchs (7-4-1) took down the Tribe of William and Mary (5-10-1) by a score of 1-0 at the Martin Family Stadium Albert-Daly Field on Tuesday night.
Coach Dawson said after the match, “I thought we settled down and played better soccer as the match went on. We came out with more energy in the second half. I thought the performance was good. We will take a one to nil result anytime, so we are happy to pick up the win.”
With the win, Dawson is now 200-108-32 while in the midst of his 18th season at the helm for Old Dominion. Dawson is the winningest coach in Old Dominion University soccer history and entering the season was the NCAA's 13th winningest active coach by percentage (.689).
In the first 22 minutes, it was William & Mary who was on the attack, attempting eight shots; however, ODU’s redshirt sophomore goalkeeper, Alex Tiesenhausen, collected three early saves, one being on a one-on-one with the Tribe’s William Eskay in the 19th minute.
In the 24th minute, Old Dominion’s Jesse Miralrio fired a shot, which nailed W&M’s crossbar and sailed out of bounds and led to an unsuccessful corner kick try.
The first 45 minutes came to an end, with the score still level at 0-0. Both teams attempted eight first half shots, while the Monarchs took three corners compared to the Tribe’s two.
Just three minutes into the second half, Old Dominion freshman forward Tyler Edwards drilled a shot that hit William & Mary’s far post and rolled away from the goal, keeping the scored tied at 0-0.
In the 57th minute, ODU’s Miralrio dribbled past a couple William & Mary defenders before sending a pass into the center of the box, which found Tyler Edwards, who managed to beat Tribe keeper Alex Harrington to the left side. The goal was Edwards’ second of the season. The assist was Miralrio’s first of the season, and also gives the sophomore a team-leading seven points (tied with Ryan Condotta).
In the 65th minute, the Tribe’s Eskay found himself on another breakaway in which ODU GK Tiesenhausen managed to make a save with his foot, allowing the Monarchs to hold onto a 1-0 advantage.
In the 86th minute, W&M’s Eskay fired a shot with topspin, which hit the ODU crossbar and flew out of bounds, leaving Old Dominion with a 1-0 victory in Williamsburg, Va.
For the match, Old Dominion attempted 13 shots and 5 corner kicks, while William & Mary took 17 shots and 2 corners. ODU’s Tiesenhausen finished the game with 6 saves in 90 minutes of work. W&M’s Harrington collected 2 saves on Tuesday night.
NEXT UP FOR THE SOCCER MONARCHS
Old Dominion will remain on the road this weekend for a Saturday showdown against No. 18 New Mexico in Albuquerque, N.M. at 9:00 p.m. EST.