ELON, N.C. – Junior Elijah Agu struck twice to carry the Elon University men's soccer team to its second straight Colonial Athletic Association victory as the Phoenix defeated William & Mary, 2-0, on Wednesday night, Oct. 12, at Rudd Field.
 
Elon moved to 6-2-3 overall with the win and remains undefeated in CAA play with a 2-0-2 mark. The victory also snapped a three-game winless streak against the Tribe, as the loss dropped their record to 6-5-2 overall and 1-3-2 in league play.
 
"I'm very delighted for the win," said Elon head coach Chris Little. "It was a very tough CAA game as they all are. William & Mary is a really good team with some very dynamic players and it was a really good college soccer game. I thought we started out very well and obviously got the early goal. I was delighted with the effort of getting two goals and as well as a clean sheet against a very good team."  
 
The Rundown
Playing in its first home game in nearly 40 days, the Phoenix got off to an early great start thanks to a goal by Agu around the fifth minute. The Cary, N.C., native played a great cross from the right side by Nick Admaczyk who himself took a nice one-touch pass by Amir Berkane. Agu was able to settle the ball around the penalty spot before pushing it into the top right corner for the early 1-0 lead.
 
Both teams battled over the next 40 minutes of play in the half with the Phoenix holding off a furious charge by the Tribe, who came into the match as the leading goal-scoring team in the CAA. William & Mary's first shot on goal however came in the 34^th minute as a header try by Reeves Trott was corralled by keeper Matthew Jegier.
 
The Phoenix went into the half with its 1-0 advantage on the scoreboard with both teams knotted at 5-5 in shots. The maroon and gold also had twice as many corners as the Tribe, 4-2, but could not convert any of those chances into goals.
 
William & Mary continued to chase the equalizer going into the second stanza, but was bitten by a counter attack by the Phoenix in the 50^th minute. Berkane intercepted a pass and sent a great through ball between the two center backs to Agu who found himself facing the keeper alone at the six-yard box. A low shot past the netminder gave Agu his eighth goal of the season and a 2-0 lead for the Phoenix.
 
The Tribe had only one more shot on goal in the remainder of the match in the 68^th minute. Trott took a header attempt from near the six-yard area, but Jegier was again there for the easy stop. Elon eventually secured the 2-0 victory and its sixth overall clean sheet of the season.
 
Notable
• Jegier played all 90 minutes in goal and collected his fifth shutout of the season. It was also the 14^th in his career for the Charlotte, N.C., native as he made two saves on the night.
• For the fourth straight game, Elon lost the shot battle, 13-9, but had four shots on target compared to two for the Tribe. Agu had the only multi-shot performance for the Phoenix with two for the match.
• The two assists for Berkane were the first points of the season for the sophomore and also the first multi-assist game since Jack Willbye had two versus St. Bonaventure on Sept. 2.
• Elon's win moves the Phoenix into sole possession of third-place in the league standings with eight points, one shy of second-place Delaware. Hofstra still paces the CAA with 18 points with its victory tonight over Drexel.
 
Up Next
The Phoenix heads to Drexel for the first time for its final league road match of the year this Saturday, Oct. 15. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m.