DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.— The 22nd-ranked Embry-Riddle men's soccer team picked up their fifth win of the season Saturday night defeating the Warner Royals, 4-0 at Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium. The win kept the Eagles undefeated in Sun Conference play and marked their third consecutive win.
Play between the Eagles and Royals was physical throughout the match, but it went back and forth for the first 17 minutes with each team controlling the ball evenly on the pitch. Embry-Riddle struck first, however, when freshman Veit Couturier lofted a beautiful ball from the right corner just outside the 18-yard box to Viktor Gudnason. Gudnason was waiting unattended on the far post and was able to put a header past the Royals keeper, Joseph Lasala, which put the Eagles, 1-0.
The Eagles got a two goal advantage in the 27th minute when Anel Coralic dribbled into the box near the back line and got off a cross that found Couturier streaking. Couturier took the pass with one touch and put it past the Royals keeper for his 10th goal of the season.
The Royals had opportunities to score in the first half, but offside penalties and three fantastic saves from Eagle keeper Nils Carlson kept the Royals from netting a goal in the first half.
Embry-Riddle ended the half with 10 shots (three on goal) while Warner had five (three on goal). The Eagles bested the Royals in corners 4-0 and went into the locker room with a 2-0 lead.
The Blue and Gold got off to a quick start in the second half, earning their third goal of the night in the 47th minute. The Eagles were awarded a corner kick from the right side of the field and capitalized. Senior Michael Donald booted the ball towards the far post and found Couturier for a header, but it was blocked by a Warner defender. Fortunately for the Eagles, Ally MacDonald was there for the rebound and the goal.
With a three goal lead, the Eagles defense bared down on the Royals offensive attack. Embry-Riddle only yielded four shots to Warner in the second half and silenced their attacking forwards. The Eagles were able to fire off 15 more shots throughout the rest of the game, but none found the back of the net.
The physical match saw 33 total fouls, 20 for Warner and 13 for ERAU, and two yellow cards. The Eagles outshot Warner 26-9 and bested them in corner kicks 8-0.
The Eagle men will return to the pitch again on Wednesday Sept. 28 when they travel to Miami Gardens to take on conference rival St. Thomas University at 4 p.m. The game will be a rematch of the 2010 conference semi-finals in which St. Thomas came away victorious 5-3 in penalty kicks.
