Sammie Walker’s 50th minute goal became the only marker for either side on Sunday, as the WVU men’s soccer team bested Big 12 and Sun Belt rival Central Florida 1-0 in Orlando.
The Mountaineers and the Knights are the only Big 12 schools who participate in men’s soccer. Because of that, both schools compete as affiliate members of the Sun Belt in men’s soccer. They became league rivals when Central Florida left the American, which does sponsor men’s soccer, for the Big 12. Since then, West Virginia has not lost to its Big 12 rival, tying in 2023 and winning the past two matchups.
More important than winning the Big 12 Derby, the Mountaineers picked up their second league win. West Virginia (6-1-2, 2-0 Sun Belt) is one of three teams to sport a 2-0 mark in the Sun Belt, alongside Georgia Southern and Kentucky.
The Mountaineers won this matchup mostly with defense. Although Central Florida (2-5-1, 0-2) pressed the issue repeatedly, the Knights couldn’t get anything to Mountaineers keeper Mark Bonnaire. UCF got four shots off, but none were on frame. The one time the Knights appeared to have something working, Felix Ewald got his leg in front of Lilian Ricol, blocking the shot and preserving the lead.
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To the untrained eye, this match appeared academic for West Virginia. Central Florida had just two unimpressive wins to its name and had allowed multiple goals in its first four losses. But a check of the schedule revealed this match was a classic trap. UCF’s setbacks had come to ACC powers North Carolina and Wake Forest, along with nationally ranked Kentucky and UNC Greensboro.
After losing to West Virginia, the Knights now have four losses out of five to schools ranked in the top 20 nationwide. Ironically, only North Carolina, the one unranked school to beat UCF, managed to win by more than one goal.
So for West Virginia to go on the road and take all three points was an impressive showing. The Mountaineers were far from stellar in this match, but matches like these are more about result than appearance. This had the potential to damage West Virginia’s Sun Belt chances, and the defense didn’t let it happen.
WVU Men’s Soccer Created Chances
Give credit where it’s due: UCF keeper Juanvi Munoz kept his team in the game. While Bonnaire never had to make a save, Munoz made four of them. Even on Walker’s goal, Munoz was attempting to bail out his defense.
West Virginia’s goal came when Thijs Veldhorst sent a ball into the attacking half, with Walker first to get a touch. Munoz, knowing he had no chance if he waited for his defense, tried to get there first, losing the battle. Once Walker got possession, he had an open net and an easy 1-0 lead. West Virginia got two more chances to add to the lead, but Munoz turned aside late efforts from Marcus Caldeira and Antonio Lima.
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The 1-0 scoreline isn’t impressive, but it had more to do with a fine goalkeeper performance than a poor showing by West Virginia’s attack. Soccer works like that sometimes; a keeper shows up and forces a team to work for the only goal it’s going to get. The Mountaineers did that and deserved their reward.
Mountaineers Face Critical Test
WVU men’s soccer now gets to see how good it really is against Georgia Southern. The Eagles entered last week ranked No. 19, but that’s almost certain to rise on Tuesday. That’s because Georgia Southern upset Marshall, which sat fourth in the nation before a 2-1 loss in Statesboro.
That’s going to have the Mountaineers’ attention. There were reasonable questions about Georgia Southern’s record to this point. The Eagles hadn’t really played anyone of note before facing Marshall. But beating the Thundering Herd can’t be ignored: Georgia Southern is for real.
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A win here would both make a clear statement and clear the path for West Virginia to make a strong run at the league title. The Mountaineers shouldn’t lose to any of Coastal Carolina, Georgia State or Old Dominion. And that means beating the Eagles on Saturday in Morgantown would set West Virginia up for a huge week at the end of October, when they’ll play Kentucky and Marshall in consecutive games.
