Richmond, Va. — Despite a goal from Ryan Kelly, Catholic dropped its third match of the young season to a ranked opponent on Friday evening.
Playing at City Stadium in the opening game of the Simms/Flowers Classic Tournament, Travis Beauchamp's side played well for periods of the match but eventually succumbed to the Eagles.
Catholic flew out of the gates, putting No. 25 Emory under pressure from the referee's opening whistle. The Cardinals earned three corners in the first five minutes when Gordie Bernlohr fired two shots toward Peter Wagner's goal. Neither were on target, however, as one was blocked well by a defender and the other flew wide.
Emory first tested Owen Allegro in the ninth minute when the freshman goalkeeper was equal to a Colton Meyers effort. The Eagles did well to settle into the match, surviving Catholic's early pressure. Andrew Lowman tested the goalkeeper in the 24th minute but Wagner was able to keep it out.
The deadlock was broken in the 30th minute when Alejandro Gomez finished well into the upper left corner from the right side of the "D" to push the Eagles ahead.
Catholic did its best to offer an immediate response with Michael Cafiero and Liam Giblin taking on strikes quickly after the Emory goal. The Cardinals outshot the Eagles 5-2 in the first half and earned five corners to Emory's none but still trailed by a goal to nil at the break.
Catholic attempted to begin the second stanza with the same type of pressure that it began the first, with Bernlohr again firing away less than five minutes into the period, but the shot again flew wide. Hayden Lim and Kwaku Marfo-Sarbeng also fired shots off target in the opening 20 minutes of the half.
After bending but not breaking, Emory took one of its few second-half chances to double its lead in the 67th minute. Meyers was the beneficiary of good work by Ryan Hayes, finishing past Allegro to make it 2-0. It was a difficult period for Catholic as Myers claimed his brace just four minutes later.
The Cardinals pulled one back in the 77th minute when Kelly was alert as a scramble ensued in the penalty area. The junior was the quickest and most clever in the tight space, finishing through bodies with his left foot from 10 yards out.
Despite taking less shots and conceding more corners, effective finishing takes Emory to 3-0-2 on the young season. Bernlohr took a team-high four shots for Catholic.
The Cardinals will enjoy a day off from competitive action before returning to the City Stadium pitch to take on tournament hosts Hampden-Sydney on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.
