LEXINGTON, Va.- VMI pressed hard in the closing minutes of action, but were unable to overcome a Coastal Carolina goal in the 27thminute of play as the Keydets dropped their Big South opener 1-0 to the Chanticleers Monday afternoon at Patchin Field. The defeat marks the fifth meeting in a row that Keydets have been defeated by Coastal by the slim one goal margin.
Coastal (5-4-1, 1-1 BSC) got an early chance, as Justin Portillo had a free-kick eight minutes in that was cleared away by the Keydet (0-7-1, 0-0 BSC). The Keydets came right back down the field a minute later, as senior Brian Harding mustered the first of two shots on the day, a shot that was blocked by a Coastal defender only a few feet from the touchline.
In the 21st minute, VMI had its top opportunity of the opening frame, as senior forward Amir Shihata connected on a blast from 25 yards out, but the shot had too much spin and went narrowly left of the goal.
The Chanticleers would generate the lone goal of the match in the 27th minute, as Luis Faz sent a volley in from the right flank that was flicked home inside the six-yard box by Rodrigo Vianna to give Coastal the 1-0 lead and eventual game-winner.
VMI's Matt Seinfeld would challenge Coastal keeper Scott Angevine with 1:11 left before the intermission, but the senior netminder parried the blast from 25 yards out to keep the Coastal advantage at 1-0.
Much like the first half, the second half was mostly a battle of the midfield, as several Coastal opportunities came via corner-kicks, where the Chants held an 8-2 advantage in the match.
The first of several legitimate VMI scoring chances came with 24 minutes remaining, as Harding stripped a Coastal defender to earn a breakaway, but his first touch was too strong and was sprawled on by Angevine to thwart the effort.
Coastal had a golden opportunity off of a corner, as a Justin Portillo cross was blocked by the Keydet defense, Portillo picked up the rebound, sending a second cross inside the six that found the head of Alex Russell, but senior keeper Brian Sowell made an outstanding save, diving to his right and tipping the ball over the crossbar to keep the score at 1-0.
VMI then notched up the offensive pressure, as a Keydet counter-attacked found senior Sonny Landry, who fired a shot from the top of the 18 that went just wide of the left post. Following additional VMI chances, a Kurt Zimmerman header off a corner with two minutes left was stopped by Angevine, and proved to be the final opportunity of the match for either side.
Sowell made a pair of superb saves in the losing effort, while Angevine made three in the victory. Additionally, Coastal held an 18-9 shot advantage in the match.
Each side continues Big South action Sat., Oct. 9, as the Chants will play host to Presbyterian at 7 p.m., while the Keydets will travel to Boiling Springs, N.C. to take on Gardner-Webb, which is also slated for a 7 p.m. kick.
