WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Junior midfielder
Dominic Toone and senior midfielder
Tsubasa Takada each scored a goal in the second half as No. 14 UNCW opened Colonial Athletic Association play with a 2-0 victory over Elon at the UNCW Soccer Stadium on Saturday evening.
UNCW, the reigning CAA regular season champion, upped its record to 4-0-1 overall and 1-0-0 in the CAA while Elon dropped to 1-3-0 overall and 0-1-0 in the circuit.
After a scoreless first half, Toone gave the Seahawks a 1-0 lead in the 53rd minute when he knocked in a rebound of a shot from senior defender
Michael Hornsby for his first goal of the season.
Just over 10 minutes later, Takada extended the advantage to 2-0 when he took a crossing pass from sophomore forward
Jalen Anderson and fired a shot to the lower right corner for his second goal of the year.
Sophomore goalkeeper
Gabriel Perrotta tallied four saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season as UNCW limited Elon to just six shots, including one in the first half.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper
Cam Pelle made one save in the loss for Elon.
Game Notes:
- UNCW won its fourth straight game against Elon and took a 6-5-2 lead in the all-time series … The Seahawks have outscored the Phoenix by a 7-1 count during the four-game win streak.
- The Seahawks improved to 31-18-6 as a nationally-ranked team since 2004, including a 2-0-0 mark this year.
- UNCW has opened the season with a five-game unbeaten streak for the first time since 2015 when the Seahawks started the year on a six-game unbeaten streak.
- Perrotta stands sixth on UNCW's career shutouts list after registering his 12th clean sheet against Elon on Saturday night … He also holds a 16-3-3 record in 22 career starts.
- UNCW scored two or more goals for the 14th time in its last 24 games … The Seahawks are now 13-1-0 in those outings.
- Toone became the seventh different UNCW player to score a goal this season.
- UNCW outshot its opponent for the third time in five games this season.
- The Seahawks have not allowed a goal in the last 318 minutes, 45 seconds, dating back to the second half of their Feb. 20 victory at Charlotte.
- UNCW Coach Aidan Heaney was recognized for his 200th career victory prior to the game.
Up Next: The Seahawks play their first CAA road game of the season on Saturday, Mar. 20, when they visit the College of Charleston for a 6 p.m. contest.
