Villanova University

Aug. 28, 2012

Final Stats

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The first 10 seconds of the game nearly produced a goal and offense remained at the forefront for the rest of the afternoon as Villanova (2-0-0 overall, 0-0 BIG EAST) went on to post a 4-1 victory over Stony Brook (1-1-0 overall, 0-0 America East) in a non-conference men's soccer contest played on a warm afternoon at the West Campus Soccer Complex.

The national anthem had barely been completed when the Wildcats made their first push towards the goal. Sophomore Aaron Dennis dribbled outside the top of the Stony Brook box and booted a shot that caromed off the crossbar and out of play before 10 seconds had elapsed on the clock.

"I thought that was a huge moment for us," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "It set the tone we needed right from the outset."

Both teams generated quality scoring opportunities in the first 20 minutes but it was VU that cashed in first. Senior Kyle Soroka scored the first of his two goals on the day at 22:14 on a header that came off a long ball fed in from freshman Sean Sheridan on a free kick.

That lead held up through intermission. Villanova owned an 8-6 edge in shots in the first 45 minutes while senior John Fogarty recorded three saves to keep Stony Brook at bay.

The action was frenetic in the opening five plus minutes of the second half. Dennis pushed the Wildcats out to a 2-0 lead at 47:14 when he collected a loose ball in the center of the box and calmly deposited it into the right side of the net past Carlos Villa.

Stony Brook mounted a counter-attack and was rewarded at the 50:00 mark when Berian Gobeil was pulled down in the box on a dangerous chance in front of the Villanova net. Leonardo Fernandes converted the penalty kick and suddenly the Wildcats' margin was shaved to 2-1.

However, it didn't take long for Villanova to get that one back. This time it came courtesy of another loose ball 22 yards in front of the net. Senior Emerson Lawrence rifled a shot that deflected off a defender and past Villa at 50:33 to extend the Villanova lead.

Soroka then capped a brilliant afternoon with his second goal, this one also off a loose ball. The unassisted tally came at 86:41.

In its first two games in 2012, VU has recorded nine goals. Last season, the Wildcats' ninth goal came on Sept. 28th, in their ninth outing of 2011. It's part of an overall approach that favors more attacking than Villanova has done in the past.

"We feel we have the experience and skill to be more aggressive," Carlin stated. "We worked on it in the pre-season and have stuck to it. We are going to continue to take chances and I think we're a team that is a lot to deal with offensively. I can't promise we'll score nine goals in two games all the time, but I think our shot totals and goals scored will reflect our development."

Next up for Villanova is a road date this Saturday at Colgate (1:00 p.m.)