Three Unanswered Goals Push Dukes Past William & Mary

Saturday, October 9

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

10-2-0, 4-0-0

William & Mary

3-6-0, 1-3-0

William & Mary

James Madison

10/9/2021 10:37:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – After giving up an early second half goal to William & Mary, the James Madison men's soccer team scored three unanswered goals in front of the fifth largest crowd at Sentara Park to push past the Tribe, 3-1, on Saturday night at Sentara Park.

The Dukes push their win streak to six matches and move to 9-2 and an undefeated 4-0 in Colonial Athletic Association play while the Tribe moves to 3-6, 1-3 CAA. The win also moves JMU into sole possession of first place in the conference.

Both teams got off to a slow start to begin the match as neither team could find offensive chances. The Dukes were able to fire off the first shot in the 17^th minute, with Yanis Lelin's shot missing high. The two teams then battled the remainder of the half with the Tribe outshooting the Dukes 3-2 going into halftime.

The two teams had upticks in their offenses coming out of the break, as William & Mary was able to break the scoreless tie as the second half got started, scoring a goal in the 57^th minute. The Dukes were able to respond in the 73^rd minute after forcing a corner kick. Rodrigo Robles took the corner kick which grazed off a Tribe defender straight to Tyler Clegg who flicked the ball in off his chest to tie the match at one. The goal was Clegg's first of the season while Robles picked up his league leading eighth assist of the season.

JMU then took the lead minutes later, as a handball was called on the Tribe inside the box in the 78^th minute to set up a penalty kick for the Dukes. Luca Erhardt, the leading scorer for JMU, stepped up to take the shot and converted the penalty kick for his ninth goal of the season and a 2-1 lead.

The Dukes then capped off their night in the 83^rd minute with their third unanswered goal. Alex Krakowiak intercepted a pass in the midfield and sent a pass down to Ethan Taylor who then gathered himself and fired a shot into the upper right corner for a 3-1 lead to solidify the win.

Game Notes

The Dukes have scored three or more goals in three consecutive matches for the first time since they put together a streak of four such matches in 2010.
JMU put seven of their 12 shots on goal.
Luca Erhardt is the first JMU player to score a point in four straight matches since Manuel Ferriol from Oct. 22-Nov. 10, 2019.

Quoting Head Coach Paul Zazenski
"We are very proud of the group tonight for keeping their heads and staying the course. William & Mary had an excellent game plan and were effective most of the match. As we were down late, we went away from our normal possession-oriented soccer and played more direct in the proper moments and we're very proud of how the players adjusted mid match. The rivalry is a great one and a special shoutout to all the fans that showed up as it was a tremendous crowd."

Up Next
The Dukes will have the week off before heading down to Wilmington, N.C. to take on UNCW on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. It'll be the first time the two teams will face each other since their top-25 matchup during the spring season.