Mercer University
No. 29 UAB
Bears Stun No. 29 UAB on the Road, 1-0
10/6/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Mercer men's soccer team continued its impressive play on the road with its biggest win of the season, downing 29th-ranked University of Alabama-Birmingham 1-0 on Wednesday evening at West Campus Field.
The victory improves Mercer to 6-2-1 and is the squads' first-ever win over a ranked opponent during the 40-year history of the men's soccer program. UAB drops to 6-4 overall after the loss.
The teams finished with an even 9-9 shot count, but the Blazers did hold a slight 5-4 edge in corner kicks in the contest.
The Orange and Black controlled the tempo for the majority of the first half, but failed to put a shot in the back of the net against the Blazers. The Bears best scoring chance of the stanza came in the 33rd minute of play when sophomore Richie Edmondson sent in a beautiful diagonal ball that freshman Joshua Ball collected, but fired high over the crossbar.
Both teams went into the locker room at half with the game tied at 0-0. The Mercer defense did a great job of holding the highest scoring offense in the country to just five shots in the period.
The second half was almost identical to the first, with both teams playing stingy defense and not allowing any quality scoring opportunities.
That all nearly changed in the 66th minute, when senior Ian Cameron ripped a shot from just outside the penalty box that clanked off the right goal post and back into play keeping the match scoreless.
Mercer's offensive pressure finally paid off in the 74th minute when a run forward by sophomore Joey Heavner forced UAB to foul him in the box for a penalty kick opportunity. Cameron made sure he didn't hit any posts this time, burying the attempt to give the Bears a 1 -0 lead.
That is how the game ended, with the Mercer defense holding off a late UAB charge to shutout the Blazers for the first time all season.
Redshirt sophomore Daniel VanValkinburgh got the start in goal for the Bears and made one save while punching out multiple UAB crosses to earn the first win of his college career.
Mercer resumes Atlantic Sun Conference play on Saturday, Oct. 9 when it travels to Buies Creek, N.C. to take on the Campbell Camels. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.
