BUIES CREEK, N.C. - Sophomore Tunji Osifeso found an equalizer at 53:16 to knot the match at 1-1, but two goals in a two-minute span by No. 20 Davidson gave the Wildcats a 3-1 victory over Campbell at the Eakes Athletics Complex on Saturday afternoon.
The match was Campbell's final home non-conference contest of the season. The Camels will open Big South play next Saturday, Oct. 4, at 6:00 p.m. as they host Coastal Carolina.
Davidson held a narrow 11-9 advantage in shots and led 6-4 in shots on goal. The Wildcats also racked up 12 corners compared to just three for the Camels.
Both sides were able to apply pressure over the opening 20 minutes. Davidson had three shots over that span and freshman Bradley Farias added another for the Camels that sailed high of the net, but none were on target.
Davidson's Shane Macnamara lined up a shot from outside the box in the 26th minute, but the chance struck the left post hard and ricocheted back into play before being cleared away by Campbell's defense.
The first shot on goal of the night came from John Pace of the Wildcats in the 28th minute, whose attempt was stopped by redshirt freshman goalkeeper Matthew Mozynski.
The Wildcats were able to grab the lead just before halftime with a goal from Nathan Marder at 39:19. Valeriy Sviderskiy broke free of his man on the right side and played a low pass to Marder in front of the center of the goal. Marder collected the pass and beat Mozynski to the lower right corner for the 1-0 advantage that held up into the halftime break.
Coming out of the locker room, Campbell pushed up and applied offensive pressure on Davidson goalkeeper Matt Pacifici. Osifeso, Bryce Miller and Farias each had shots on goal over a three-minute span, and Osifeso finally broke through at 53:16. The Laurel, Md., native had a solo run and found space on the left side of the box before firing a strong shot past Pacifici and into the upper right corner for the equalizer.
Neither side was able to find any shots on goal over the next 20 minutes despite five corners for the Wildcats and another for the Camels. On the sixth corner for Davidson, however, Luke Blades was able to serve the corner in to Alan Reiter, who got a head on the pass that found the back of the net to give the Wildcats a 2-1 lead.
Just over a minute later, Reiter fired a hard shot into Mozynski's mitts and the keeper was able to deflect it to the right. Drew Brown was there for Davidson and collected the rebound at the right post for the score and a 3-1 advantage.
Senior Scooter Oliver had a late chance to pull one back for the Camels, but his attempt from just outside the box went high over the crossbar.
Next Saturday's Big South opener against Coastal Carolina will also serve as Campbell's "Camels For a Cure" matchup. Fans are encouraged to wear pink in support of cancer awareness and the first 100 fans will receive a free pink t-shirt. Donations will be accepted to benefit the Harnett Health Foundation.
The new Go Camels App is free and now available for iPhone and Android.
Link to iPhone: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/go-camels-front-row/id905263762?mt=8
Link to Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.prestosports.campbell
