September 1, 2004

BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Virginia Tech men's soccer team opened the season with a quick 1-0 lead over the UNC Greensboro Spartans just 70 seconds into the contest, thanks to an own goal by the Spartans. Sophomore Rand Patterson atoned for the miscue, firing in two shots for the home team in a 2-1 victory in both team's season opener. UNCG stands at 1-0-0 while the Hokies fall to 0-1-0.

The Spartans retaliated quickly after the early goal, scoring three minutes later on a Patterson shot past goalie Chase Harrison to make the game 1-1. Senior Jeff Lochrie notched an assist on the play.

Both teams remained tied until the 72:46 mark. Junior Egill Atlason found Patterson, who promptly wasted no time in netting the game-winner for UNCG.

At halftime, the Spartans had out-shot the Hokies 7-3 and doubled up on the amount of corner kicks, 4-2.

For the game, Tech was out-shot 15-7, but the team made the most of the shots, producing five that were on goal. However, UNCG managed 12 shots on goal in the contest.

The Hokies' Harrison tallied 10 saves on the night.

Tech travels to Harrisonburg to participate in the James Madison Diadora Classic and faces Northeastern at 5 p.m. on Friday, September 3. UNCG hosts Clemson on Saturday, September 4 at 7 p.m.