Deacs Tally 100th ACC Win, Beat BC 5-0
NEWTON, Mass. -- Freshman Jack Harrison scored twice Friday night as the fourth-ranked Wake Forest men's soccer team extended its unbeaten streak to four in a row with a 5-0 road victory over Boston College in ACC play.
Wake Forest improved to 8-1-1 and 3-0-1 in conference play while Boston College dropped its first match in five contests, falling to 6-3-1 and 2-2 in conference play. The defeat is BC's first since Sept. 11 against NC State. With the victory, Wake Forest has now hit the 100-win mark all-time in ACC play. Overall, the Deacs are 100-104-33 in conference action dating back to the program's inception in 1980.
"This was a total team win tonight," said head coach Bobby Muuss. "Each and every player that stepped on the field played their role and managed the game extremely well. To go on the road and perform the way we did in this conference is a testament to this group. They were extremely focused for 90 minutes."
With the 5-0 victory, it marks the second time this season the Deacs have won by a five-goal margin, as Wake Forest also topped UNC Asheville 5-0 on Sept. 8. Now at two five-goal wins this season, the Demon Deacons have posted three games with a final score margin of 5-0 or more over the past 23 games. The Demon Deacons topped VMI 7-0 last year on Sept. 23 behind four goals from Michael Gamble. Prior to its 7-0 defeat of VMI, the last time Wake Forest scored five goals in a contest was a 5-2 win over NC State on Oct. 22, 2011.
Last time Wake Forest beat an ACC opponent by five goals or more came the season after the national championship run when the Deacs topped Virginia Tech 8-2 on Oct. 4, 2008.
The Deacs got off to an impressive start on a 49-degree, rainy night in Massachusetts and never took the pressure off the Eagles on the way to the victory. In outshooting Boston College 8-1 in the first half, Harrison notched the first goal of the night in the 33rd minute when he got to a ball 15 yards out and fired his shot, scoring his third goal of the season.
Harrison also scored the fourth goal of the night in the 67th minute when he put home a one-timer just below the crossbar on a cross from Philip Parker. Harrison is the first player this season to score twice in one game for the Demon Deacons, who have now outscored their opponents by a 4-1 ratio in scoring 24 goals while only allowing six.
Leading 1-0, Tane Gent, who came off the bench just minutes earlier, notched his third goal of the season in the 40th minute to give Wake Forest a 2-0 lead. The Deacs extended the lead in the 58th minute when Kevin Politz tallied his second goal of the season on a header off a cross from the corner. Both Jon Bakero and Brad Dunwell earned assists on the goal. Dunwell now has four assists on the season, which is one behind Harrison for the team lead.
The Deacs final goal came with eight seconds to play, as Jared Odenbeck stepped up to take a penalty kick and converted, finishing off the Deacs' 5-0 win. Scoring 89:52 into the contest, Odenbeck's goal marks the latest goal scored in regulation in program history. The tally beat the previous record of 89:50, set by Brad Collins on Sept. 16, 1992, against Appalachian State.
Alec Ferrell earned the start in goal for Wake Forest and earned his third shutout of the season, making two saves in the contest. Overall, Wake Forest held a 12-5 advantage in shot while posting a 9-2 margin in shots on goal. Boston College was whistled for 20 fouls and three yellow cards in the game while Wake Forest was charged with 10 fouls and zero cards.
Wake Forest returns to action Tuesday night back at Spry Stadium for a 7 p.m. match against South Carolina. The game between the Deacs and 13th-ranked Gamecocks will be aired on ESPN3.
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