ELON, N.C. – Scoring a goal within :42 seconds of a game is impressive enough as it is, but graduate student
Victor Stromsten's night for the Elon University men's soccer team was only just getting started.
Stromsten's offensive explosion against Radford University began before many fans even had an opportunity to find their spot in the Rudd Field bleachers. He received a leading pass and put the ball into the back of the net, catching the Highlander defense off balance and waking up the home crowd early to celebrate his first goal of the season with his teammates.
"The boys have been giving me a little stick for the last game when I missed a little bit of a sitter," Stromsten said. "I really wanted to score today. Fortunately, I got a really good little flick on by Colin [Veltri] early on, and I think the defense was just stumped to be honest. They weren't really ready for that one."
One goal scored in the first minute of the game is enough to put the crowd into a frenzy and shake the opposing team. However, Stromsten proved he was ready for more as he received a pass, this time to the right side of the Highlander goalkeeper, and once again booted the ball into the net.
"It was a fast counter attack, Jordin [Wilson] with great speed down the line and a perfect square ball," Stromsten said. "I didn't really put it as I should've, but got it in the end.
Twenty-eight seconds had elapsed between Stromsten's first and second goal as Elon took a resounding 2-0 lead in the first :70 seconds of game action, marking the fastest time a pair of goals have been scored in Division I program history.
The speedy start for the Phoenix carried over momentum from its season-opening
1-0 win over Florida Gulf Coast University, where the Phoenix scored a game-winner in the 90th minute.
"The last game was very hard-fought, we scored with :47 seconds left. As much as that is very frustrating and I believe we should've put that game to rest a little bit earlier, getting a goal that late is also a great extra feeling of celebration, and you really feel more pumped afterward," Stromsten said. "I think that really bonded us a little bit more to go through hardship earlier in the season but still come out winning on top, which was huge. We've been really excited to play this game, especially considering we should've scored a lot more last game. Today we just put those chances away."
The two early goals marked the second multi-goal performance of his collegiate career but Stromsten didn't stop there. Up 3-0 courtesy of junior
Charlie Kitch's goal, in the 70th minute, Stromsten weaved past the Highlander defense once again and knocked in his third goal of the game, marking a career-high and securing the hat trick.
In the 77th minute, Stromsten earned an assist on junior
Connor Mucchetti's goal, as the Phoenix cruised to a 5-0 victory over the Highlanders. The assist put a bow on a seven point performance from Stromsten, marking another career-high.
"I want to give props to the coaches today, we had a really good scout on the opposition and we knew what areas to target in their defense and what we could do to break them down," Stromsten said. "I think we executed that very well, so it's always a cooperation between the team and the coaches."
The win was also significant, as the Phoenix were able to put on a show for a crowd of 682 fans and fellow Elon student-athletes in attendance after their annual Welcome Back Picnic.
"It's always more fun to play in front of people that want you to do well," Stromsten said. "It gives us a little extra boost to run a little harder, be a little creative, to be a little more fun to watch. I really felt that during the warmups we had a little bit of extra nerves maybe but that just adds to the suspense. There's another way where you can go over the top and get a little nervous, but I believe the whole team did a very good job at putting that energy to good use."
The Phoenix will play two more non-conference matchups before its first in-conference game on Sept. 7 against Drexel. Elon looks to carry the momentum from this win into the next several weeks of games ahead.
"It was a huge victory for myself, the team and the whole school today, so I'm very happy," Stromsten said.
'Rising Phoenix' is a new student-led initiative to cover Elon Athletics. Through innovative content creation and storytelling, Elon University students will have the opportunity to highlight the moments, people and events that make an impact, leveraging the athletic department's various web and social media platforms for distribution. Follow Rising Phoenix on Twitter (@EURisingPhoenix) and Instagram (@elonrisingphoenix). Interested in joining this initiative as a content creator (video, graphics, writing, storytelling, or more)? Contact Chase Strawser at cstrawser@elon.edu.
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