Coastal Christian soccer rolls past Cape Fear Academy with second-half surge
The Centurions' change of attack creates scoring opportunities
By Jackson Fuller StarNews Staff
The Coastal Christian soccer team didn’t find things easy against Cape Fear Academy on Tuesday. After a 7-1 win in the previous meeting, the Centurions dominated possession in the first half but couldn’t find a breakthrough.
However, things changed in the second half as Coastal pounced on two golden opportunities to claim a 2-0 win over its rivals from Cape Fear. Goals from Tommy Murphy and Douglas McKinney propelled the Centurions (14-2-1, 7-1) to a victory that keeps them alive for a conference championship.
“It was Cape Fear’s senior day, and with it being a rivalry game we knew they were going to come out ready to play,” Coastal coach Mike Scheffel said. “We fought hard in the second half and got a nice team win.”
Matt Ward and Murphy each hit the post in the first half while Cape Fear’s Eric Kanzinger recorded five of his nine saves to keep the match scoreless.
However, a halftime adjustment proved to be the difference. The Centurions noticed the Hurricanes (11-7, 5-4) were playing a very deep back-line. Instead of trying to feed passes to the forwards, Coastal’s midfielders tried to break the defense themselves in the second half with runs right up the middle.
The new strategy paid off in the 49th minute when Tommy Murphy drifted past a couple defenders and got right near the Cape Fear goal. A Hurricane defender tried to shield the ball as it headed out of bounds, but Murphy got around the defender and poked the ball into the back of the net for the opening goal.
“He tried to shield me out,” Murphy said. “I faked left and went right, and once I got around him I snuck it near post.”
While Murphy’s first goal was the game-winner, Coach Scheffel admitted he wasn’t feeling completely at ease until Douglas McKinney doubled the Centurions advantage later in the half.
McKinney forced a turnover and reacted quickest, gliding to the ball and dribbling 20 yards before firing a right-footed shot past the Cape Fear goalie.
Before McKinney’s goal, Cape Fear had a couple of chances to equalize but couldn’t connect the right passes inside Coastal’s penalty box.
“The game has its ebbs and flows,” Cape Fear coach Meade McFarland said. “You could tell we were gaining momentum, but just couldn’t finish anything off.”
Tuesday’s loss wraps up the regular season for Cape Fear Academy. The Hurricanes will know their playoff fates in the NCISAA on Sunday.
Coastal, meanwhile, still has one match left against the current conference leader Fayetteville Christian on Thursday. The Centurions will split the Cape Fear Conference title with a win, but the game still is in jeopardy with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew still affecting the Fayetteville area.
The Centurions' change of attack creates scoring opportunities
By Jackson Fuller StarNews Staff
The Coastal Christian soccer team didn’t find things easy against Cape Fear Academy on Tuesday. After a 7-1 win in the previous meeting, the Centurions dominated possession in the first half but couldn’t find a breakthrough.
However, things changed in the second half as Coastal pounced on two golden opportunities to claim a 2-0 win over its rivals from Cape Fear. Goals from Tommy Murphy and Douglas McKinney propelled the Centurions (14-2-1, 7-1) to a victory that keeps them alive for a conference championship.
“It was Cape Fear’s senior day, and with it being a rivalry game we knew they were going to come out ready to play,” Coastal coach Mike Scheffel said. “We fought hard in the second half and got a nice team win.”
Matt Ward and Murphy each hit the post in the first half while Cape Fear’s Eric Kanzinger recorded five of his nine saves to keep the match scoreless.
However, a halftime adjustment proved to be the difference. The Centurions noticed the Hurricanes (11-7, 5-4) were playing a very deep back-line. Instead of trying to feed passes to the forwards, Coastal’s midfielders tried to break the defense themselves in the second half with runs right up the middle.
The new strategy paid off in the 49th minute when Tommy Murphy drifted past a couple defenders and got right near the Cape Fear goal. A Hurricane defender tried to shield the ball as it headed out of bounds, but Murphy got around the defender and poked the ball into the back of the net for the opening goal.
“He tried to shield me out,” Murphy said. “I faked left and went right, and once I got around him I snuck it near post.”
While Murphy’s first goal was the game-winner, Coach Scheffel admitted he wasn’t feeling completely at ease until Douglas McKinney doubled the Centurions advantage later in the half.
McKinney forced a turnover and reacted quickest, gliding to the ball and dribbling 20 yards before firing a right-footed shot past the Cape Fear goalie.
Before McKinney’s goal, Cape Fear had a couple of chances to equalize but couldn’t connect the right passes inside Coastal’s penalty box.
“The game has its ebbs and flows,” Cape Fear coach Meade McFarland said. “You could tell we were gaining momentum, but just couldn’t finish anything off.”
Tuesday’s loss wraps up the regular season for Cape Fear Academy. The Hurricanes will know their playoff fates in the NCISAA on Sunday.
Coastal, meanwhile, still has one match left against the current conference leader Fayetteville Christian on Thursday. The Centurions will split the Cape Fear Conference title with a win, but the game still is in jeopardy with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew still affecting the Fayetteville area.
