Box Score The Wright State men's soccer team notched their fourth victory in their last five matches and posted their second consecutive shutout as they defeated Alabama A&M 6-0 on Tuesday afternoon. Six different players scored to give WSU their highest goal output since the 2003 season and sophomore goalkeeper Corey Whisenhunt recorded his second shutout of the season.
"I'm very proud of the effort from our entire team,” said head coach Bryan Davis. “Today we competed as a team to collect a victory over a quality opponent on the road. We now have to shift our focus and prepare for another great road test on Saturday."
Braden Fleak would strike first for WSU in the 34th minute as Joe Flach set up the senior for the lone tally of the opening frame. Fleak would collect the long pass from Flach, dribble around one defender and strike with a shot from 16-yards out to give WSU a 1-0 lead heading into the half.
WSU held a 9-0 shot advantage in the opening frame and the Green and Gold forced the AAMU keeper to make four other saves in the opening 45 minutes.
In the second half, the Raiders offense came alive with five goals coming on only eight shots. The scoring was started when Jonah Longino score off of a set piece in the 53rd minute. Brian Cothern set up the play with a free kick from left flank and Longino connected for his second goal of the season.
Just six minutes later, WSU would score again on a set piece when Adam Harp sent a long throw-in that found the head Brad Bamberger for the third Raider score. It was the fifth goal of the season for Bamberger, fourth of the header variety, and was the first assist of the match for Harp.
Just 35 seconds later, Justin Circle added his name to the tally sheet when he intercepted a pass from Alabama A&M goalkeeper Paul Musoke and connected on a shot from 18 yards out. It is the first career goal for Circle and pushed WSU's lead to 4-0 at the 59:08 mark.
The fifth Wright State goal came in the 70th minute, when Ivan Yanez broke free along with Harp and Jabari Velinor to start a three-on-two break. Yanez connected on a pass to Harp, who crossed the ball to Velinor, who struck a perfect shot from 15 yards away. It was the second assist of the match for Harp and represents goal number two of the season for Velinor.
The final tally of the match would be provided by freshman Tim Sampson on a solid individual effort. After stealing a pass from the Bulldog defense, Sampson dribbled past another and fired from the far left flank that nestled itself just inside the far post for a 6-0 WSU advantage.
The Raiders improved to 6-9-1 with the victory and outshot the Bulldogs 17-7 for the match. WSU placed a season-high 11 shots on goal and Whisenhunt made just one save to claim his second shutout of the season. Alabama A&M held a 3-0 advantage in corners and the Bulldogs were whistled for three offsides to just one for Wright State.
The Raiders will close out the regular season with a pivotal Horizon League match on Saturday, November 7 at Butler. The Green and Gold will travel to Indianapolis to face the 18th ranked Bulldogs starting at 3:00.