Charlotte, N.C. – Behind goals by David Mayer, Hans Honer and Kyle Parker over the final 22 minutes, the 10th-ranked Charlotte 49ers (7-1-0) rallied to defeat William & Mary (3-7-0), 3-1, at Transamerica Field. The 49ers have now won six straight games.
“It was a night we were lacking a little bit in energy to start the game, and we asked it to be a full squad effort, so we used a lot of guys off the bench early,” Charlotte coach Kevin Langan said. “For me tonight, David Mayer, Hans Honer and Mark Sloan really brought that energy in the second half and really changed the game for us. The first half we had a lack of energy and flow and at halftime, we had to correct that. In the second half the guys who came on were full of life and running, and gave us a little bit of a spark as a team. It was a wonderful response after falling behind, and that is the second time we have come from behind, which is a great trait to have. It was a quite a pleasing night when you look at it overall.”
After tonight's three goals, the 49ers have now scored 10 goals this season after the 68 minute mark of the match.
William & Mary took an early 1-0 lead when Josh West passed to William Eskay who put the ball into the back of the net from six yards out in the third minute.
Over the final 11 minutes of the first half, Charlotte had two good scoring chances but shots by Parker and Brandt Bronico were stopped by William & Mary goalkeeper Bennett Jones.
Charlotte began to take control of the game in the second half. The 49ers took nine of the first 10 shots of the half scoring on two of those shots.
In the 69th minute, Bronico back-heeled the ball to Zhuvonte Wilson streaking down the right side of the box. Then, Wilson crossed the ball to Mayer who put a shot into the lower left corner of the goal tying the game at one. Mayer's goal was his first of the season. This marked Mayer's first action since getting injured in the 49ers season-opening victory over Radford.
In the 75th minute, Max Rodriguez took a free kick from the left side of the field about 30 yards from the goal. Rodriguez's kick found Honer near the far post. Honer shot the ball and it hit off the post. Then, he got his own rebound and put the ball into the right corner of the goal from three yards out giving the 49ers the lead for good. Honer's goal was his second of the season.
In the 82nd minute, Dominic Bonilla crossed the ball from the right side of the field to Parker who was streaking toward the goal. Parker then blasted a shot into the lower right corner of the goal giving the 49ers a 3-1 lead. Parker's goal was his fourth of the season. Bonilla has now recorded at least one assist in five straight games.
Charlotte finished the game with a 14-6 advantage in shots. Charlotte had an 11-3 advantage in shots in second half. Parker led the 49ers with six shots. Honer and Bronico had three shots apiece.
Charlotte returns to Conference USA play when they travel to Columbia, South Carolina to play South Carolina, Saturday, October 4 at 7 pm.
