ELON, North Carolina – Junior defender
Kasper Lehm scored the game-winning goal with 1:51 remaining in overtime as Elon held off a late charge by UNCW to hand the Seahawks a 4-3 loss in Colonial Athletic Association men's soccer action at soggy Rudd Field on Saturday evening.
The win elevated the Phoenix's record to 6-5-1 overall and 3-1-1 in the CAA. UNCW, meanwhile, dipped to 7-4-1 overall and 2-2-0 in league play after having its four-game unbeaten streak snapped.
Lehm gave Elon the golden-goal victory when he took a pass from
Scott Vatne and slipped a shot inside the right post past junior goalkeeper
Gabriel Perrotta for his first goal of the year.
The overtime goal ruined the Seahawks' comeback bid after redshirt senior defender
Drew Rabil forced overtime when he scored with 5:38 remaining in regulation.
For the second straight game, UNCW took an early 1-0 lead in the opening minutes as junior midfielder
Omar Aboutaleb took a pass from graduate student midfielder
Jacob Evans and scored his fifth goal of the season.
But, Elon responded by scoring three consecutive goals in a 20-minute span to claim a 3-1 lead. Senior forward
Jack Edwards started the run with a goal in the 19th minute before Vatne followed just over five minutes later to give the Phoenix a 2-1 advantage.
Freshman midfielder
Calle Edelstam completed the spurt with 6:57 left in the first half when he netted the first goal of his college career off a Lehm assist.
Junior forward
Cannon Tootle closed the deficit to 3-2 just 72 seconds later when he converted a feed from graduate student defender
Michael Hornsby for his third goal of the season, including his second marker in the last three outings.
Redshirt junior goalkeeper Peter Wentzel made six saves in the win for Elon, which was outshot by a 20-9 margin, including an 11-1 count in the second half.
Perrotta notched one save for the Seahawks, who lost for the first time since Sept. 21 at Campbell.
UNCW returns home on Saturday, Oct. 16, to face defending CAA champion James Madison at 7 p.m. Elon visits Northeastern for a 1 p.m. league fixture next Saturday.
