UNCW men’s soccer earns come-from-behind win

BALTIMORE, MD (UNCW) — Senior forward Julio Moncadascored two goals in the second half as UNCW scored three times in a 14-minute span to earn its second straight win, a 3-1 non-conference victory over UMBC at the Retriever Soccer Park on Friday evening.

The win improved the Seahawks’ record to 2-0-0 while UMBC dropped to 0-1-1 on the season.

“This was really a great win on the road tonight,” CoachAidan Heaney said. “UMBC is a strong side and this is not an easy place to play. We felt a little disappointed to go a goal down, to be honest, as we were playing well. But similar to last week, our team showed tremendous grit and determination to come back from the setback.

After a scoreless first half, the Retrievers took a 1-0 lead in the 67th minute when senior midfielderChristian Morales knocked home a rebound off a blocked shot by junior midfielder Gregg Hauck.

But, Moncada scored twice in a three-minute span to give UNCW a 2-1 advantage with 17:00 remaining. He tied the game on a 10-yard shot in the 71st minute after receiving a pass from sophomore midfielder Joel Bylander before converting another Bylander pass for the go-ahead marker.

Sophomore forward David Lozano added an insurance tally with 5:17 left when he converted a 16-yard shot for his first goal of the season.

Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Cretens tallied two saves for the Seahawks, who were outshot by a 10-8 margin. Senior Billy Heavner posted one save in the loss for UMBC.

“Julio played a real captain’s role in scoring his two goals as his play deserved it,” Heaney said. “David also deserves special mention for the hard work he has put in this summer to get leaner and fitter and scored our third goal to make things a bit more comfortable.

“But, our group effort was the most impressive as our players worked extremely hard for the victory,” the Seahawks’ coach continued. “We can now enjoy our trip home tomorrow and prepare to defend our tournament title next weekend.”

#SeahawkStats: The Seahawks and the Retrievers met for the third time in a series UNCW leads by a 2-0-1 margin … It was the first meeting between the two teams since 1979 … UNCW has scored six of its seven goals this year in the second half … The Seahawks are off to a 2-0-0 start for the third time in the last four years … Moncada became the second UNCW player to record a multi-goal game this season, joining junior forward Stian Sandbekkhaug.

Up Next for UNCW: The Seahawks open their regular season home schedule next weekend by hosting the UNCW SpringHill Suites Classic. UNCW faces Dayton on Friday, Sept. 9, before closing the tournament against Winthrop on Sunday, Sept. 11.

College Men’s Soccer: UNCW 3, UMBC 1
UNCW  0-3 / 3
UMBC  0-1 / 1

Goals: UNCW – Julio Moncada 2 (70:14, 73:00), David Lozano (84:43); UMBC – Christian Morales (66:11).Assists: UNCW – Joel Bylander 2; UMBC – Gregg Hauck. Saves: UNCW – Ryan Cretens 2 (90:00, 1 goals allowed); UMBC – Billy Heavner 1 (90:00, 3 goals allowed). Shots: UNCW – 8; UMBC – 10. Corner Kicks:UNCW – 7; UMBC – 7. Attendance: 1,449.