Wheeling, W. Va. - After a hard-fought battle last time out against Frostburg State, the Wheeling University Men's Soccer team (4-8, 3-7) returns home on Wednesday afternoon to take on West Virginia Wesleyan at 4 PM. Wheeling has played well on their home field, going 3-3 in six home games this season, and they are looking to keep that success going on Wednesday.
On Saturday, the Men's Soccer team headed to Frostburg State and fought hard but fell 1-0 to the Bobcats. Goalkeeper Harry Firth had a big game, making four saves and keeping the Bobcats off the board for the first 84 minutes of the game. However, the offense couldn't find their opportunities throughout the night and was outshot in the game 11-5. It was the shot difference that made the difference in the Cardinal loss.
Firth faced five shots on goal throughout the night and made the save on four of those shots. Of the three Cardinals' goalies who have appeared in games this season, Firth has been the one with the best save percentage. He leads the group with a .725 save percentage and has made the most saves of the three, with 29 on the season. Only one other eligible goalie has made more saves than Firth in the Mountain East Conference (MEC), and that is Frostburg's Joel Assal, who has 42 saves this season.
On the offensive side of the ball, a new leader has emerged with sophomore Harry Martin upping his game over the last couple of weeks. He scored the lone Cardinal goal last week against The University of Charleston and has seen more playing time as the season has gone on. Martin ranks second on the team in goals with three, behind sophomore Richard Afolayanka, but has only taken five shots this season. He has been one of Wheeling's most efficient shooters, putting all five shots on goal that he has taken.
Wheeling currently sits in seventh place in the MEC entering play on Wednesday and is one game behind Alderson Broaddus for the sixth-place spot. With five games remaining on the 2021 regular-season schedule, Wheeling is sitting just nine points out of a spot in the MEC playoff tournament. With five games remaining, Wheeling is looking to turn things up as they try to play their way into the MEC tournament.
The Match-up
In 32 previous meetings between the two teams, Wheeling has a record of 8-19-5 against West Virginia Wesleyan. However, there has been a big difference between when the team plays in Wheeling as opposed to Buckhannon. When playing on the road, the Cardinals have gone just 3-13-3 against the Bobcats. However, when they play at Bishop Schmitt Field, that record is a little better, with the Cardinals going 5-6-1 in 12 home contests.
The last game between the two teams came earlier this year in Buckhannon, West Virginia. It was closer than the final score suggested because the Bobcats scored three goals in the final 10 minutes of play. Wheeling ended up losing the game 4-0 and were outshot 14-5 on the night. Miguel Martin led the offense that night, taking two shots, one on goal, while Harry Martin and TJ Cherry each added a shot in the loss.
The Details
Kick-off for Wednesday afternoon's game is scheduled for 4 PM. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
