Men's Soccer Perseveres Against Panthers

In Short: The Sea Devils notched another non-conference win against the Division I Denmark Tech Panthers at North Campus Soccer Field.

Highlights:

After their most recent conference matchup that ended in a tie at home, Cape Fear Men's Soccer was hungry to get back onto their home pitch to re-establish themselves as a 26-man unit. While referee shortages had a slight delay on match start, Cape Fear took the pitch with poise and determination.

The Panthers played a fast-paced, physical game and made the Sea Devils work for every play through the midfield. Cape Fear was able to execute meticulous transition passing as they opened up multiple scoring opportunities early on in the match. Returning Sophomore striker Marcello Afonso hustled relentlessly to earn a Sea Devil goal halfway through the first half.

Freshman attacker Daniel Bustos Marin continued to make intelligent runs through the Panthers' back line and was able to put one in as well in the first half. "He got into some really good spaces in front of their back like and combined nicely with our midfielders," reflects Head Men's Soccer coach Dave Martin. "It gave our wide players lots of opportunities to score as well."

Afonso earned another well-placed goal for the Sea Devils at the beginning of the second half, though the Panthers followed suit after capitalizing on one of the few defensive breakdowns the Sea Devils incurred throughout the match.

The Sea Devils defensive line refused to allow any fast break opportunities and continued to shut down the Panthers for the remainder of the match. Freshman Fernando Aldama tallied one more goal for the Sea Devils as key midfielders Logan Wipperfurth, Cuauthy Espinoza, and Alex Medina put in the sweat equity to finish the match strong across the entire containment of the pitch.

"Compliments to Denmark Tech - they have played some really close games against strong opponents and we knew they would come out with a ton of passion," says coach Dave Martin.

Up Next: Cape Fear Men's Soccer takes a deserved break and will return to North Campus Soccer Field on Wednesday, October 5th at 2PM for a rematch with Region 10 opponent Patrick & Henry.