Thursday, November 10
Greensboro, N.C.
6 PM
Mercer University
13-6-0
2
vs
0
Wofford
12-7-0
1
2
F
Wofford
0
0
0
Mercer
1
1
2
Team Stats
WOF
MER
Goals
0
2
Shots
3
13
Shots on Goal
1
5
Saves
3
1
Corners
0
8
Fouls
7
8
Scoring Plays
Kobe Perez
Header off clearance by Wofford off corn
42:36
Kobe Perez (2)
35-yard chip of goalkeeper after GK came
58:06
Game Leaders
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
2
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Soccer
GK
/ Men's SoccerMF
/ Men's Soccer
MF/D
/ Men's Soccer
Perez’s Two Goals Vault Mercer into SoCon Title Match
11/10/2016 9:18:00 PM | Men's Soccer
PHOTO GALLERY | SOCON CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET
GREENSBORO, N.C. – A pair of goals by midfielder Kobe Perez and a stout team defensive performance lifted second-seeded Mercer to a 2-0 win over No. 3 Wofford in the Southern Conference Tournament semifinals Thursday night at UNCG Soccer Stadium.
The victory vaults the Bears (13-6-0) to their second SoCon Championship title match in three years, where they will face No. 1 ETSU (12-4-2) at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12 in Greensboro. The Bucs defeated host UNCG, 5-2, in the first semifinal match earlier Thursday to set up a third meeting of the conference's top two teams.
Mercer will be seeking revenge after the Bucs visited Bear Field 13 days ago and captured the SoCon regular season championship with a 3-2 comeback win over the Bears.
STAT OF THE MATCH
Mercer's defense slammed the door shut on the Terriers by limiting them to three total shots, only one of which was on goal. The Bears fired off 13 shots (five on goal) in contrast. Wofford entered the match with the second most shots (256) and goals scored (33) among SoCon teams.
The defensive performance was quite similar to the two teams' first meeting this season on Sept. 27 in Macon when Mercer held Wofford to only one shot in a 2-0 victory.
MAN OF THE MATCH
It was Kobe Perez, not once, but twice, who found the net for Mercer on Thursday night. The sophomore midfielder doubled his season total of one goal in a span of 16 minutes, bookending the halftime intermission with scores in the 42nd and 58th minutes.
HOW IT HAPPENED
With three minutes left before halftime, Trenton Whitely sent a corner kick into the box, only to be headed away by a Wofford defender. Perez found himself in position to send a follow-up header attempt just above the reach of Wofford goalkeeper Joe Wichmann to break the match open.
Perez was at it again 13 minutes into the second half when the Bears executed against a failed attempt by Wofford to clear the ball. Wichmann left the box to help clear the ball with a header, only to send it directly to Perez, who chipped a shot from 35 yards out to give Mercer the commanding 2-0 advantage.
Strong ball possession in the midfield and defense from there sealed the SoCon semifinal victory for the Bears. Goalkeeper Jeremy Booth earned his 12th win and fifth shutout in goal for the Bears while facing only one shot on goal in the 17th minute.
NOTABLES
On when things started to click for Mercer:
"I'll be honest, I think for the first 15 or 20 minutes we struggled with the speed of the play and [Wofford's] pressure. It was difficult to play through 10 guys, but we made a change."
On Kobe Perez's play:
"Kobe Perez had an outstanding game tonight and really came to play. Set pieces at this point in the season are really important, and we got our first goal on a set piece. It changes the game and forces [Wofford] to do something different."
On limiting Wofford to three shots:
"I think it isn't just the guys in the back, but through the whole team. Forwards, midfielders – I think our midfield worked extremely hard tonight – and then obviously our defenders did really well. We let the game open up too much in the first half...after talking about it, I think we handled it a bit better in the second half."
On Saturday's title match against ETSU:
"[ETSU] is obviously a good team; [head coach] Bo [Oshoniyi] has done a good job with them. They beat us 10 or 12 days ago for the regular season championship, so we know they are a good team. We've got to get back and recover our bodies first and then create a plan to beat team. I think it's going to be a good game; they know that and we know that as well. We've got some work to do."
RECORD UPDATE
No. 1 seed ETSU (12-4-2) is all that remains between No. 2 Mercer and its first SoCon Tournament title. The top-seeded squads will face one another for a third time this season at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12 at UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro.
ETSU blew past host UNCG, 5-2, earlier Thursday afternoon in the first semifinal match. Five different players scored for the Bucs to help them advance to the SoCon title match for the second consecutive season.
FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's Soccer, please follow the Bears on social media at @Mercer_MSoccer (Twitter) and /MercerMSoccer (Facebook) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
GREENSBORO, N.C. – A pair of goals by midfielder Kobe Perez and a stout team defensive performance lifted second-seeded Mercer to a 2-0 win over No. 3 Wofford in the Southern Conference Tournament semifinals Thursday night at UNCG Soccer Stadium.
The victory vaults the Bears (13-6-0) to their second SoCon Championship title match in three years, where they will face No. 1 ETSU (12-4-2) at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12 in Greensboro. The Bucs defeated host UNCG, 5-2, in the first semifinal match earlier Thursday to set up a third meeting of the conference's top two teams.
Mercer will be seeking revenge after the Bucs visited Bear Field 13 days ago and captured the SoCon regular season championship with a 3-2 comeback win over the Bears.
STAT OF THE MATCH
Mercer's defense slammed the door shut on the Terriers by limiting them to three total shots, only one of which was on goal. The Bears fired off 13 shots (five on goal) in contrast. Wofford entered the match with the second most shots (256) and goals scored (33) among SoCon teams.
The defensive performance was quite similar to the two teams' first meeting this season on Sept. 27 in Macon when Mercer held Wofford to only one shot in a 2-0 victory.
MAN OF THE MATCH
It was Kobe Perez, not once, but twice, who found the net for Mercer on Thursday night. The sophomore midfielder doubled his season total of one goal in a span of 16 minutes, bookending the halftime intermission with scores in the 42nd and 58th minutes.
HOW IT HAPPENED
With three minutes left before halftime, Trenton Whitely sent a corner kick into the box, only to be headed away by a Wofford defender. Perez found himself in position to send a follow-up header attempt just above the reach of Wofford goalkeeper Joe Wichmann to break the match open.
Perez was at it again 13 minutes into the second half when the Bears executed against a failed attempt by Wofford to clear the ball. Wichmann left the box to help clear the ball with a header, only to send it directly to Perez, who chipped a shot from 35 yards out to give Mercer the commanding 2-0 advantage.
Strong ball possession in the midfield and defense from there sealed the SoCon semifinal victory for the Bears. Goalkeeper Jeremy Booth earned his 12th win and fifth shutout in goal for the Bears while facing only one shot on goal in the 17th minute.
NOTABLES
- Mercer improved to 3-1-1 all-time at the SoCon Championship.
- The Bears defeated Wofford three times in as many contests this season, outscoring the Terriers 7-1 in the process.
- Mercer is now second in the SoCon with seven shutout victories this season.
- Perez's two-goal performance is the third time a Bear has had multiple goals in a match this season; Will Bagrou owns the other two efforts.
On when things started to click for Mercer:
"I'll be honest, I think for the first 15 or 20 minutes we struggled with the speed of the play and [Wofford's] pressure. It was difficult to play through 10 guys, but we made a change."
On Kobe Perez's play:
"Kobe Perez had an outstanding game tonight and really came to play. Set pieces at this point in the season are really important, and we got our first goal on a set piece. It changes the game and forces [Wofford] to do something different."
On limiting Wofford to three shots:
"I think it isn't just the guys in the back, but through the whole team. Forwards, midfielders – I think our midfield worked extremely hard tonight – and then obviously our defenders did really well. We let the game open up too much in the first half...after talking about it, I think we handled it a bit better in the second half."
On Saturday's title match against ETSU:
"[ETSU] is obviously a good team; [head coach] Bo [Oshoniyi] has done a good job with them. They beat us 10 or 12 days ago for the regular season championship, so we know they are a good team. We've got to get back and recover our bodies first and then create a plan to beat team. I think it's going to be a good game; they know that and we know that as well. We've got some work to do."
RECORD UPDATE
- No. 2 Mercer: 13-6-0
- No. 3 Wofford: 12-7-0
No. 1 seed ETSU (12-4-2) is all that remains between No. 2 Mercer and its first SoCon Tournament title. The top-seeded squads will face one another for a third time this season at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 12 at UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro.
ETSU blew past host UNCG, 5-2, earlier Thursday afternoon in the first semifinal match. Five different players scored for the Bucs to help them advance to the SoCon title match for the second consecutive season.
FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's Soccer, please follow the Bears on social media at @Mercer_MSoccer (Twitter) and /MercerMSoccer (Facebook) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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