University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Busy Second Day for UNC Asheville Men's Soccer in Costa Rica - Blog and Match Report
05.16.2017 | Men's Soccer
Day Two Photos (Gallery on Facebook)
"After waking up early to eat breakfast we traveled to Costa Rica's national team stadium. The stadium was very nice and an it was an incredible experience to be able to walk around in it. After the stadium we headed to a local soccer field to play soccer with a big group of underprivileged kids. We played soccer with the kids for about an hour and it was quite an amazing experience seeing their smiling faces and hanging out with them as we all tried to speak our best Spanish. After this community service we came back to the hotel for another incredible meal before departing to our first game against Herediano reserves. We played to a 2-2 draw in Heredias stadium. It was incredible to be able to play in a professional stadium and even without a lot of fans we could feel the professional atmosphere of the place. Finally we took the bus home, ate dinner and relaxed at the hotel for the night.Â
Blog of Monday, May 15, by Sam Holton, Joe LaCasto and Richie Lee
Match Report from head coach Mathes Mennell - Herediano (finished second in the Costa Rican Primera Division standings)
UNC Asheville First XI:  Tyler Moore (GK), Brendan O'Dowd, Hayden Poell, Zack Compton, Ryan Enriquez, Joe LaCasto, Frank Morales, Andrew Lawrence (Capt), Luiz Felipe Dantas, Jackson Allen and Ben Chapal
1st Half Highlights: The game started brightly for UNC Asheville as the Bulldogs enjoyed early possession and promptly built an attack that featured 4-5 passes and ended with Brendan O'Dowd getting forward from his left back spot only to see his shot saved by the keeper. Â
In the fifth-minute, Herediano found the first goal of the game with some nice interplay down the right flank and finding well timed cross that was headed home by the home side. Despite the early goal, the Bulldogs remained committed and continued to build into the game. Their possession was rewarded with a handful of nice chances, the best of these being a Joe LaCasto free kick which thundered off the crossbar and a header from Frank Morales that the Herediano GK tipped over the bar in the 30th-minute. The Bulldogs almost tied the game in the 49th-minute as some skillful interplay between Andrew Lawrence and Elvis Boateng sprung Joe LaCasto. LaCasto's effort on goal cleanly beat the GK only to have the post keep out his effort.
UNC Asheville 2nd Half XI: Dakotah Bainter (GK), Trenton Klatte, Zack Compton, Carter Phillips, Sam Holton, Brandon Millington, Joe LaCasto, Andrew Lawrence (Capt), Elvis Boateng, Richie Lee and Luke Manring
2nd Half Highlights: The second half saw a much more even game in terms of possession as Herediano matched the Bulldogs first half possession and the home side found the net from the left flank as they broke through and beat Bainter with a hard driven shot to far post in the 50th-minute. The Bulldogs response was near immediate as UNC Asheville won a free kick in the 52nd-minute and Andrew Lawrence found Brandon Millington with a nicely whipped in ball which Millington buried with a sharp header. The goal signaled Asheville's intent and the Bulldogs immediately pressed for an equalizer but were kept out by several good saves by the GK of the home side. The breakthrough for the equalizer came in the 90th-minute as Frank Morales collected a loose ball at midfield and jumped into space. Morales then slipped in Ben Chapal and the senior made no mistake and calmly buried his chance after settling the pass from Morales. Â
Head Coach Mathes Mennell offered the following thoughts after the match: "I thought we played really well for the majority of the game and created good chances. We had two defensive breakdowns and to their credit, Herediano punished us for these. I was really pleased with the majority of our individual performances and the way our group kept their composure was really nice to see. A tie in our first match against one of the top teams the past season in the Primera is a great start to the footballing part of our tour."
Andrew Lawrence and the Herediano #77 were selected as the Costa Rica Soccer Tours Men of the Match.
The Bulldogs will be back in action as they take on traditional powerhouse L.D. Alajuelense at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, May 16.
More From the UNC Asheville Men's Soccer Trip to Costa Rica
Day One Blog and Photos
UNC Asheville Excited for "Once in a Lifetime Opportunity" (Story ahead of trip to Costa Rica)
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"After waking up early to eat breakfast we traveled to Costa Rica's national team stadium. The stadium was very nice and an it was an incredible experience to be able to walk around in it. After the stadium we headed to a local soccer field to play soccer with a big group of underprivileged kids. We played soccer with the kids for about an hour and it was quite an amazing experience seeing their smiling faces and hanging out with them as we all tried to speak our best Spanish. After this community service we came back to the hotel for another incredible meal before departing to our first game against Herediano reserves. We played to a 2-2 draw in Heredias stadium. It was incredible to be able to play in a professional stadium and even without a lot of fans we could feel the professional atmosphere of the place. Finally we took the bus home, ate dinner and relaxed at the hotel for the night.Â
Blog of Monday, May 15, by Sam Holton, Joe LaCasto and Richie Lee
Match Report from head coach Mathes Mennell - Herediano (finished second in the Costa Rican Primera Division standings)
UNC Asheville First XI:  Tyler Moore (GK), Brendan O'Dowd, Hayden Poell, Zack Compton, Ryan Enriquez, Joe LaCasto, Frank Morales, Andrew Lawrence (Capt), Luiz Felipe Dantas, Jackson Allen and Ben Chapal
1st Half Highlights: The game started brightly for UNC Asheville as the Bulldogs enjoyed early possession and promptly built an attack that featured 4-5 passes and ended with Brendan O'Dowd getting forward from his left back spot only to see his shot saved by the keeper. Â
In the fifth-minute, Herediano found the first goal of the game with some nice interplay down the right flank and finding well timed cross that was headed home by the home side. Despite the early goal, the Bulldogs remained committed and continued to build into the game. Their possession was rewarded with a handful of nice chances, the best of these being a Joe LaCasto free kick which thundered off the crossbar and a header from Frank Morales that the Herediano GK tipped over the bar in the 30th-minute. The Bulldogs almost tied the game in the 49th-minute as some skillful interplay between Andrew Lawrence and Elvis Boateng sprung Joe LaCasto. LaCasto's effort on goal cleanly beat the GK only to have the post keep out his effort.
UNC Asheville 2nd Half XI: Dakotah Bainter (GK), Trenton Klatte, Zack Compton, Carter Phillips, Sam Holton, Brandon Millington, Joe LaCasto, Andrew Lawrence (Capt), Elvis Boateng, Richie Lee and Luke Manring
2nd Half Highlights: The second half saw a much more even game in terms of possession as Herediano matched the Bulldogs first half possession and the home side found the net from the left flank as they broke through and beat Bainter with a hard driven shot to far post in the 50th-minute. The Bulldogs response was near immediate as UNC Asheville won a free kick in the 52nd-minute and Andrew Lawrence found Brandon Millington with a nicely whipped in ball which Millington buried with a sharp header. The goal signaled Asheville's intent and the Bulldogs immediately pressed for an equalizer but were kept out by several good saves by the GK of the home side. The breakthrough for the equalizer came in the 90th-minute as Frank Morales collected a loose ball at midfield and jumped into space. Morales then slipped in Ben Chapal and the senior made no mistake and calmly buried his chance after settling the pass from Morales. Â
Head Coach Mathes Mennell offered the following thoughts after the match: "I thought we played really well for the majority of the game and created good chances. We had two defensive breakdowns and to their credit, Herediano punished us for these. I was really pleased with the majority of our individual performances and the way our group kept their composure was really nice to see. A tie in our first match against one of the top teams the past season in the Primera is a great start to the footballing part of our tour."
Andrew Lawrence and the Herediano #77 were selected as the Costa Rica Soccer Tours Men of the Match.
The Bulldogs will be back in action as they take on traditional powerhouse L.D. Alajuelense at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, May 16.
More From the UNC Asheville Men's Soccer Trip to Costa Rica
Day One Blog and Photos
UNC Asheville Excited for "Once in a Lifetime Opportunity" (Story ahead of trip to Costa Rica)
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Players Mentioned
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