Elon University Athletics

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – A penalty kick goal from freshman Scott Vatne was enough to make the difference as the third-seeded Elon University men's soccer team defeated No. 2 seed Northeastern 1-0 on Thursday, Nov. 11 to advance to its first-ever Colonial Athletic Association championship final.
 
In its first trip to the CAA Tournament since 2017, the Phoenix (9-7-2) picked up its first win at the league championships, moving to 1-3-1 all-time in the tournament. Elon also managed to shutout a Northeastern squad (11-6-2) that came into the match leading the CAA in goals scored.
 
"It was a great group performance," said Elon head coach Marc Reeves. "We prepared very well. Northeastern has a great group of players and to make it to the final four on the conference side is incredibly tough. It wasn't the prettiest of games, but we got the job done and we're headed to the final and that's what I am most pleased with."
 
The Rundown
Elon withstood some early pressure from the Huskies to open the game. Northeastern had two shots within the first five minutes of the contest, but neither were on target. The first shot on goal however came off the foot of Northeastern's Dan Munch in the 13^th minute, but Phoenix netminder Peter Wentzel was able to corral it easily.
 
The Phoenix's first true chance came off a corner kick in the 25^th minute. Vatne sent a ball to the box that found the head of Jack Edwards, but the ball sailed high over the goal.
 
The match went into the halftime break with both teams in a scoreless stalemate. Both teams combined for only five shots with the Huskies having four of those chances, but Elon countered with a 3-1 advantage on corners.
 
Going into the second stanza, Elon continued to defend at a high level despite added pressure from the Huskies. Northeastern outshot the Phoenix 10-0 in the first 25 minutes of the second period, but Elon's defense did not allow the Huskies to get clean looks at the goal with Wentzel also making a couple of saves in the process.
 
In the 75^th minute, the Phoenix finally broke the scoring drought to take a 1-0 lead. Freshman Calle Edelstam found himself open for a look on a shot near the top of the box in which Northeastern's keeper Colby Hegarty was able to make a diving stop near the left post. The ball got away from the netminder however and during a race for the ball, Hegarty took down Elon forward Victor Stromsten in the box with the official whistling for an immediate penalty kick.
 
Vatne took the assignment and connected on his third goal of the season. Northeastern threw numbers up forward in search for the evasive equalizer, but the Phoenix locked down on defense and held the Huskies to only one shot on frame in the final 15 minutes to secure its spot in the CAA title match on Sunday.
 
 
Notes
• This is Elon's first trip to a conference title game since competing at the Southern Conference tournament final in 2013.
• Elon improved to 6-2-2 all-time over Northeastern with the Phoenix going unbeaten in the last three meetings of the series (2-0-1).
• Wentzel had six total saves in the match to post his sixth individual shutout of the year and the team's seventh this season.
• Northeastern outshot the Phoenix 18-5 overall in the match and doubled the maroon and gold in corners, 8-4.
• Eight of Elon's nine wins this season have come by a one-goal margin.
 
Up Next
The Phoenix advances to the CAA Championship final to take on host and No. 1 seed Hofstra on Sunday, Nov. 14, at Hofstra Soccer Stadium. The match will kickoff at 1 p.m.