Sea Devils Men's Soccer Stands Out in Exhibition Debut

In Short: The Sea Devils came into their own during a friendly exhibition against NCAA Division III Methodist University.

Highlights:

With a team of mostly newcomers and new coaching staff, the Sea Devils took the pitch for the first time of the Fall 2022 season fired up and ready to compete. The entire 26-man roster hit the ground running in warm ups as the entire team was excited to work together for the first time in a game-like setting.

The rain came down and the Methodist Monarchs came out ready for the challenge. The Sea Devils were able to control the tempo for the majority of the game - creating abundant attacking opportunities for each other and shutting down many well-coordinated attacks from the Monarchs. Cape Fear's sense of urgency, while also exemplifying patience and control on the defensive side of the ball, lead them to a successful matchup overall against a competitive NCAA team.

The first goal for the Sea Devils started out with the defensive back line building their attack with numbers and transitioning through the left wing of the midfield. Benny Hernandez-Pacheco executed the initial shot on goal as Isaac Puente-Castro followed the goalkeeper's save and tucked the ball away to score.

Following the Sea Devil goal, the Monarchs capitalized on a corner kick to even the playing field. "We haven't worked on defending set pieces yet for corner kicks, so they were able to capitalize on that," says Head Men's Soccer Coach Dave Martin. "It's something we will work on in the coming weeks."

The Sea Devils returned the favor as Alex Medina lofted one off of a free kick to Dawson Cox, who placed a header in great scoring position for Sophomore captain Caleb Woodard to finish the job.

"All 26 guys contributed in this win," remarks Coach Dave Martin. "We were organized and composed on and off the ball. Defensively we pressed at the right moments and worked as a unit. Thrilled the boys got a win."

"It was fun putting in a good shift and playing in the rain," says returning Sophomore Seanpaul Negron. "We love starting the season off with a W."

Up Next: 

The Sea Devils return to North Campus Soccer Field on Wednesday, August 24th to take on Shaw University for another exhibition matchup at 3 PM.