By Gabriel Wiest–
Louisville men’s soccer is set to play the final game of the regular season against Wake Forest Friday Nov. 1 at 6:00 p.m. at Lynn Stadium.
The Cardinals have a strong 6-2-1 home field advantage against Wake Forest. The Deacons (12-2-1), are highly competitive in the ACC with high profile wins against No. 4 Clemson and No. 20 NC State.
Compared to Wake Forest, Louisville’s (7-5-2) schedule has been more challenging. Louisville has faced off against six nationally ranked teams, while Wake Forest only played three. Louisville has also taken hard fought wins, defeating No. 2 Georgetown 1-0 in double overtime.
While Louisville upset Georgetown, the Cardinals also took a hard 4-0 loss against Clemson. This makes Louisville a mixed bag. They have the abilities to beat ranked teams, but need to make sure offense and defense is cohesive.
Historically Wake Forest has defeated Louisville eight times, with Louisville only winning against the Deacons three times. In last year’s match against the Deacons, Louisville won 2-1 putting a win in reach.
The Card’s also have five games that have gone into overtime, taking four wins from these games with one tie. This experience gives Louisville the upper hand if the game comes to the wire in overtime.
Senior Cherif Dieye will be leading the offense for Louisville with six goals and four assists. Junior Emil Elveroth will also bring the heat on offense, scoring three goals this season. Between the two they have a combined four game-winning goals.
Dieye specifically has had an excellent year, earning ACC Player of the Week with two game winning scores in one week.
After playing Wake Forest, Louisville will enter the ACC men’s Soccer Championship starting on Tuesday Nov. 5. Their opponent has not been decided.
Photo by Anna Claire Will / The Louisville Cardinal
