Virginia Men’s Soccer Bounces Back with 1-0 Win Against George Mason
Under the lights of Klockner Stadium and a reddish-tinted full moon, the Cavaliers returned to their winning ways after a dominant display against in-state foe George Mason. After wins from Virginia men’s and women’s soccer, there is an argument to be made about the moon having an orange tint, making it a ‘Hoo Moon.’
After Virginia women’s soccer defeated West Virginia 2-1, Virginia men’s soccer kicked off for the second game of the doubleheader. The game-winner and lone goal came from freshman Stephen Annor Gyamfi midway through the first half to allow the Cavaliers to get back in the win column with a 1-0 victory against George Mason after falling to Loyola Marymount 3-1 on Sunday night.
“It was a good win. George Mason did a good job and played very hard. We controlled the game without allowing one dangerous chance,” said UVA head coach George Gelnovatch.
After the goal, the game became chippy, with four yellow cards and one red card handed out, with the red card given to George Mason towards the end of the first half. The Cavaliers completely controlled the game once the Patriots fell to ten men.
"There were a couple of bad tackles in that game," said Gelnovatch.
In the opening minutes, Virginia struggled to find their rhythm against a strong press from George Mason. The Patriots continued to demonstrate their prowess, as it would serve as their best pressure throughout the game.
In response, Virginia attempted multiple counterattacks and slowly returned to form and flipped the momentum of the early stages. As the game progressed, the Cavaliers' attacks inched closer to goal, with Mouhameth Thiam finding Leo Afonso in the box, whose shot deflected off target. Minutes later, Will Citron rocketed a shot a few feet outside the 18-yard box that curved over the net.
A few possessions later, a promising counter-attack set up Leo Afonso on the far right side of the box. Then, Afonso, similar to his assist in the season opener against Iona, made a back-heel kick to Thiam, who shot it, but his shot was deflected right to Stephen Annor Gyamfi. Gyamfi, who was all alone, calmly buried his shot into the bottom right corner before celebrating with a perfect backflip to put Virginia up 1-0.
After the goal, both teams struggled to create enticing chances, but things began to get chippy. First, Albin Gashi received a yellow card for a challenge before Gyamfi was fouled harshly by Zach Golden, which was enough to prompt the referee to give Golden a red card, putting an end to his night and leaving the Patriots with ten men.
On the ensuing possession, a precise pass from Daniel Mangarov to Afonso nearly doubled the Virginia advantage, but the shot was punched over the net by Jaume Salvado. Towards the end of the first half, Virginia earned three corner kicks but failed to make anything of them.
In the second half, the Cavaliers immediately pressured the Patriots in search of doubling their advantage. George Mason's best chance of the second half was a long-range shot from Brent Field that sailed over the net.
Shortly after, Virginia fired right back with a long ball to Triton Beauvois, leaving him with just the goalie to beat, but failed to get past Salvado. Minutes later, Beauvois had another shot inside the box and was this time off target. Beauvois was then subbed off for Afonso as the Virginia attack persisted.
“It would have taken a bit of pressure off us if we had been able to get that second goal, and we created enough chances to get it, but we just couldn’t put it away tonight. We will keep working at it, but that was a good performance and a good win,” said Gelnovatch.
Despite the strong surge from the Cavaliers, Virginia was unable to find a second goal, but was able to secure the victory, defeating George Mason 1-0. As the final whistle sounded, players from both teams were pushing each other around and arguing to conclude a night of hostility between the two Virginia schools.
Virginia finished the game with 14 shots, with 4 on goal. Defensively, the Cavaliers only allowed two shots on goal the entire game, both from outside the box.
The Cavaliers will return to action on Monday to round out their homestand against Maryland, who defeated Virginia 6-1 last season in Washington D.C. Kickoff is set for 7pm, 364 days after their last matchup with the Terrapins.
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