After playing 3 games in 5 days, the men's soccer team has proven they can control a game, but they haven't been able to score as much as necessary. In this 3 game stretch, the Caps won one, lost one and tied one.
Last Thursday, we travelled to Chapel Hill High and controlled the play very nicely. The second half lead extended to 4-1 and allowed for many substitutions. But Chapel Hill was not ready to quit and scored two late goals. The Caps hung on for a 4-3 victory.
The next evening, the team travelled to play Jacksonville in the Brittany Memorial Tournament in Wilson . The game began like the previous night, the Caps controlled play nicely, but the team looked very sluggish. The big difference was only AJ Iiames was able to find the back of the net to tie Jacksonville. A Caps' defensive breakdown resulted in an easy goal giving Jacksonville a 2-1 lead. The Caps managed to keep up the pressure, but the very low energy play by the Caps against a packed in defense, allowed Jacksonville to escape with win.
Monday, August 30 the men played against a very talented East Wake team. Although both the energy level and the level of competition was much better, it was another example of good ball control without scoring. The result was a entertaining match that resulted in a tie. Before the game was over, most of the Caps' team had reasonably good shots on goal, but none were able to finish. Both the EW keeper and the Cap's Matt Franciosi were challenged, but both were able to make good saves.
The Caps record is 3-2-1 going into Wednesday's 6:30pm contest at East Chapel Hill. ECH is undefeated and ranked 9th in the state. The Caps fell to 6th in the state after the two losses last week.