October 27, 2009

Box Score

BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Longwood University men's soccer team fell at Virginia Tech 5-1 on Tuesday night in Blacksburg. Junior Harvey Headley/Coventry, England (Stoke Park) scored the only goal for Longwood. The Lancers return to action on Sunday, November 1, when they host Atlantic Soccer Conference foe Houston Baptist University at the Athletics Complex in Farmville at 1 p.m..

Longwood struck first when Headley took a pass from senior Marcus Dixon/Gloucester (Gloucester) and beat the corner to the lower right corner to give the Lancers' the 1-0 lead in the 18th minute. Virginia Tech (5-9-2) evened the match in the 31st minute. Sophomore Cody Merkes/Chesapeake (Hickory) received a red card shortly after the Hokies tied the match. Emmanuel Akogyeram scored the game-winning goal in the 40th minute on an open shot in front of the net.

The Hokies added three goals in the second half, one on a James Gilson penalty kick.

“Getting the first goal was going to be decisive,” said Longwood head coach Jon Atkinson. “Unfortunately, we didn't realize the importance of playing tough defense. Having a player sent off so early from what was already a patched-up back line didn't help, but we played a big part in our demise. We have to learn from our experiences if we want to be a Division I power in the future.”

Virginia Tech outshot Longwood 16-3 and had a 7-1 edge in corner kicks. Robert Alberti had two goals for the Hokies while Gilson had one goal and one assist.