FREDERICK, Md. –
Cristian Topovich (Frederick, Md./Oakdale) in his Blazer debut nets two and assists two as the men's soccer team burns rubber in the second half to take down the Phoenix of Wilson College 6-1 in the season opener at Thomas Athletic Field on Friday night.
Inside the Box Score
Topovich the Frederick native nets career goal seven and eight on the afternoon.
Chino Delgado (Hyattsville, Md./Bladensburg) scores a pair of first career goals within a minute.
James Knowlton (Ijamsville, Md./Urbana) the Ijamsville native scores his first Blazer goal.
Adam Labows (Leonardtown, Md./Leonardtown) earns his first career W in his first career match.
Evan Miller (Dover, Pa./Dover) scored his first career goal in the second half.
How it Happened
Just minutes into the half the Blazers had three contested shots on goal fly high and off of the netting protecting the Volpe Athletic Center.
The speed that picked up in front of the Phoenix goal looked to be a different gear than the Blazer past. Interceptions at the midfield and a new brand of play calling from
Geoff Moore put five shots up only 12 minutes in.
Alvernia transfer
Zeth Zambrano (Austin, Tx./Barca Residency Academy) controlled the offensive midfield for the Blazers, complimenting the new faces while the former ones getting back to their usual positioning.
Terrell Funchess (Taneytown, Md./Henry E. Lackey) displayed his speed with the long ball, buying time to pack the box leading to multiple headers by flashing teammates just missing the mark.
But even to the lopsided momentum of the match, a broken play on the Blazer defensive end led to a Wilson attacker all alone with green grass and the first-year goalie. An extraordinary effort by
Lucas Godfroy (Adamstown, Md./Urbana) stopped charge but another unmarked Wilson attacker picked up the pieces and put the first goal on the board.
Already one yellow card in the match for the Phoenix, another foul at the edge of the box set up the other transfer reinforcement Topovich for the free kick. Topovich touched his shot top right cheddar of the goal to equalize the match.
A breakaway directly after the goal set the Phoenix up with a one-on-one but Labows stood strong and rejected the strike.
With a lot of energy but only one goal to show, second half Hood turned it on after 15 minutes.
Topovich served a ball into the box but this time after one Blazer leaped and missed, Knowlton's knee and head found the ball and the lead.
The fresh legs of Delgado got a chance to join the party as he scrapped with a blue jersey on a breakaway and as the ball skipped high off the turf, he spun on the run, stayed on his feet and scored career number one.
Less than a minute later, a man up charge for the Blazers found a pass from none other than Topovich to Delgado and another opportunity was punched to extend out of reach.
Up Next
The squad will labor on Labor Day with a matchup with Chatham at Thomas Athletic Field. The September 1 matchup will have kickoff at 1 p.m..
