Jauk’s Goal Lifts Niners Over High Point and Into the Second Round of NCAA Tournament

Press release provided by Charlotte 49ers Athletics

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – In front of a raucous crowd at Transamerica Field, Charlotte Men’s Soccer (13-3-1) claimed the 1-0 victory over High Point (10-4-5) in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament Thursday evening.

“It was an unbelievable atmosphere,” said Head Coach Kevin Langan. “Thousands [reported attendance of 1,869] of fans. The noise, the excitement, the bands just made it a real fun night for us. And these guys deserve a big crowd and these guys deserve a night at home like that just because of the fantastic growth that they have put in this season so it was a great Charlotte Soccer game.”

In the 37th minute, Filip Jauk scored on a beautiful header over a charging Panthers keeper and the Charlotte defense withstood a Panthers attack that attempted eight shots in the second half as Leonard Stritter came away with all four of his saves in the final period.

“Once you start to get to 10 minutes left [in the game], we practice a lot as a team and as a group how we finish games in that moment,” said Langan. “[Leonard] just gives a great calmness. He was probably the calmest man in the whole stadium. He just fixes his hair and catches the ball. He’s just really good in those moments.”

The Niners advance to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament, where they will go on the road to face host and No. 9 seeded Clemson on Sunday, Nov. 19 at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now, priced at $8 for general admission and $3 for youth. Tickets can be purchased, HERE.

“We do not look beyond the next game and we spoke about it before today’s game-- ‘there is no tomorrow,’” said Langan. “Now, we do have a ‘tomorrow.’”

HOW IT HAPPENED

In the 37th minute, Logan Frost found Lasse Laursen with space and Laursen took advantage by lofting a cross deep into the box. The 6-5 Jauk won the aerial challenge against a charging 6-0 High Point keeper and directed a header towards the open net for the game’s lone goal.

Stritter made four saves and arguably none better than his save in the 84th minute. High Point sent an absolute screamer towards goal but Stritter was in great possession to earn the stop.

In the 65th minute, Brigham Larsen nearly doubled the Charlotte lead. Samy Kolby made a great sliding tackle and Matthew Kirk won possession in space, racing into the box before passing ahead to Larsen who only needed to get past the Panthers’ keeper for the goal but the keeper earned the save and then was able to corral the rebound before Larsen was able to put another shot on-target.

Brad Dildy also had a phenomenal opportunity to add an insurance goal but his shot from inside the box went wide in the 79th minute

Charlotte was forced to play with 10 men for the final 56 seconds after senior Jonathan Nyandjo was sent out with his second yellow card. The Panthers were only able to get one shot attempt (it was blocked) out of the opportunity and the ball went out of play for a goal kick with 15 seconds left to cement the Charlotte win.

STAT FACTS

Barring an appeal, Nyandjo will miss the second round contest against Clemson after being assessed two yellows tonight.

Laursen, Daniel Moore, and Ian Pilcher all played 90 minutes in the Charlotte back line.

Larsen registered a team-high two shots on goal and Moore also put a shot on-target.

The reported attendance for tonight’s match was 1,869.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The Niners hold a 10-13-6 overall record in the National Tournament.

Charlotte’s NCAA History features a pair of trips to the College Cup in both 1996 and 2011. In 2011, the 49ers made their best run at the final trophy, advancing all the way to the National Championship match, before falling, 1-0, to Chapel Hill in Hoover, Alabama. 2011 was also the last time that Charlotte has advanced past the second round.

The Niners are looking to advance past the second round for the first time since 2011. In 2019, the Niners defeated Mercer, 3-1, in the first round, before losing to No. 3 seed Clemson, 2-1, in the second round of the tournament.

SECOND ROUND OF NCAA TOURNAMENT

The top 16 ranked teams in the NCAA Tournament gets first-round bye and will host the winners of first round matchups. The winning team from each of the sixteen single-elimination games will advance to the third round.

ROAD TO THE COLLEGE CUP

The College Cup is made up of the last two rounds of the NCAA Division I tournament, consisting of two semifinals and one final to determine the ultimate national champion. The top four teams will make a trip to Louisville, Ky. to play in the College Cup at Lynn Family Stadium. The semifinals will be played on December 8, 2023 and the final will be played on December 11.