The Elon University men’s soccer team concluded Senior Night with a dramatic 1-0 victory against the University of North Carolina Wilmington. This result marks the first win for the Phoenix since their 2-0 victory against Davidson College Sept. 16 and boosts their overall record to 6-2-5. 

Head coach Marc Reeves said it felt extra good to win for the seniors after a tough stretch that included opponents like No. 10 the University of North Carolina Greensboro, Duke University and Clemson University. 

“Sometimes you can have lapses where you don’t win games, but this is an incredibly tight conference game against a really good opponent on a night where you just have to dig in for your seniors,” Reeves said. 

During the first half, the Phoenix primarily played a safe game on offense, limiting their attack. They only attempted two shots compared to the five UNCW had. One came from junior midfielder Jahmir Flowers which got blocked and another from sophomore forward Alex Wharton was off target.

At 3-5-2, UNCW tried to make an immediate statement on offense, but junior forward Miralrio Bryan’s shot was saved by graduate goalkeeper Jackson Leavitt. The Phoenix limited their aggressive attack, holding them scoreless. 

Junior defender Charlie Kitch said the team knew they had to continue playing hard for every minute throughout the half. 

“Just keep going, getting back, always having our teammates back and just keep playing,” Kitch said. “That's all it takes.”

Despite the strong defense, Reeves said he wasn’t happy with the team’s performance heading into halftime. He said he felt like the team wasn’t giving themselves a chance to win early on with their energy. 

“I didn’t think we started well at all,” Reeves said. “I was disappointed in our energy and competitive levels.”

In the second half, Elon began to ramp up the attack offensively. However, they still couldn’t come up with a goal despite some of the chances. 

Elon had more opportunities over the course of the half but were still struggling to generate anything. Overall, they outshot UNCW 10-2 in the second half. 

Their best opportunities came with just under 52 minutes left where redshirt sophomore midfielder Dominik Renz and junior midfielder Martin Kozak each had their shots blocked. 

With four minutes left, Elon finally broke through when Kitch converted a header for the game’s first and only goal. The score awoke a crowd that was eager to see Elon capitalize on their chances. 

Kitch said all he recalls was hitting the ball into the goal. He said he couldn’t see the ball going in because he was falling down, but assumed something good happened when the crowd cheered. The score was Kitch’s first of the season.

“I didn't really see much,” Kitch said. “I knew I headed it, and then I landed facing backwards, and then everyone was just jumping and yelling so I figured I may have scored.”

Elon held firm the rest of the way to win a thrilling 1-0 match. Kitch was very happy to pull out the win for the seniors. 

“Tonight just feels great, especially on senior night,” Kitch said. “There’s no better way to do that.”

The Phoenix will have the week off before traveling to Charleston, South Carolina to play College of Charleston on Oct. 18.