Marshall University’s men’s soccer team dropped to 4-7 on the season after a 3-1 road loss Saturday against the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (6-2-1).
Despite eight saves and two goals allowed by Marshall goalkeeper Bijan Gloston, his effort was not enough for the Herd.
In the first half, the 49ers shot the ball nine more times than the Herd and finished the match with a 25-5 advantage.
Charlotte scored its first goal in the 12th minute as Matej Dekovic assisted to Zhuvonte Wilson for his first goal of the season.
Gloston was substituted out of the match at the 62-minute mark for sophomore Dominik Reining. One minute later, the 49ers struck as Mark Sloan scored off an assist by Kyle Parker to make it 2-0.
Charlotte added to its lead in the 84th minute, when Parker scored a one-on-one breakaway goal for a 3-0 cushion.
Marshall senior Matt Freeman scored his first goal in nearly three years off a penalty kick to give the Herd its only score of the day.
The Herd’s loss moves its conference record to 0-4.
Marshall will have its next chance to snap its six-match losing streak and gain a conference win when the Herd visits a winless Florida Atlantic University team (0-9-1) 7 p.m. Monday in Boca Raton, Florida.
Marshall head coach Bob Gray said it is crucial his team beats Florida Atlantic.
“It’s very important that we get this win,” Gray said. “We’re 0-4, and we’ve lost two of those games at home, which is a tough pill to swallow. Those Kentucky and South Carolina games were winnable, but the ball just didn’t bounce our way. We were in a similar situation last year, and we were able to get some wins. That’s what we’ve got to do. We’ve got to find a way to win.”
Joshua Hughes can be contacted at [email protected].