Wilmington, NC (September 22, 2023) - Cape Fear Men's Soccer took the pitch on Thursday afternoon to take on the Patrick & Henry Patriots: a fierce Region 10 Conference rival. While both teams fought to control the game and faced off evenly throughout the majority of the match, Patrick & Henry drew out a penalty kick call against Cape Fear with under 2 minutes left to play and finished the match with a 1-0 win over the Sea Devils.

Last season, after falling to the Patriots 4-1 in regular season play, Cape Fear and Patrick & Henry met once again in the Region 10 Conference Tournament Championship match. The Sea Devils and the Patriots battled to a 0-0 result through overtime play, before Patrick & Henry finished the game off in PKs to win the match 1-0.

The Sea Devils and Patriots traded possession evenly throughout the match start - with both teams holding possession consistently for a few runs before the other team would make a big play to regain control. The Sea Devils began to establish a more consistent attacking presence as the first half progressed with a few well-executed fast breaks combined with some coordinated attacks with distribution from the back line. The Patriots held their ground defensively as the Sea Devils continued to put shots on goal.

Moving into the second half, the Patriots picked up some momentum and kept the Sea Devil back line honest. Strong defensive communication and hard, selfless work across the pitch kept the Sea Devils in the game as they managed to make a few more runs against Patrick & Henry in the final minutes.

Unfortunately for Cape Fear, a penalty kick was called with under two minutes left to play due to a foul inside of the Sea Devils' box. The Patriots earned their goal off of the play and the Sea Devils were out of time to answer the goal in the final minute of play.

"I am so proud of how our players continued fighting until the very end," says Head Coach Giovanni Vlahos. "It was heartbreaking when the match was put into the hands of a PK call with a minute-thirty left to play, but there were lots of coachable moments for us and we'll be back at it on Monday."

Cape Fear Men's Soccer will take a week off from game play before their rematch with Patrick & Henry on their field in Axton, VA on Monday, October 2nd at 6 PM.