#12 UVM men’s soccer opens season with win over Western Michigan

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - The 12th-ranked UVM men’s soccer team picked up where they left off last Fall with an impressive 2-0 win over Western Michigan on a soggy Thursday night at Virtue Field.

The Cats poured the pressure on all night to the tune of 20 shots, ten of them on target. Ethan Brandt made eight saves for the Broncos, but eventually Vermont got to him.

Yaniv Bazini and Utah Valley transfer Carter Johnson teamed up on a pair of tallies, with each recording an assist on the other’s goal. Jacob Vitale had helpers on both as well.

“This team, this group is special,” Johnson said after the game. “Both were great team goals. Great wins from our forwards, great balls. Can’t say enough about our center backs, just the whole team. Just great from everybody. Grateful to be a part of it, grateful to be here.”

“Huge credit to the leadership that came back,” head coach Rob Dow added. “And that goes beyond Edgar (Vargas) and (Daniel) Pacella. Everyone’s got a responsibility to set the example, support each other on and off the field. Come together. New guys, new faces. I said this before the game, I feel like we’re a little ahead of that curve this season, but it takes humility and we’ve got a little bit of that.”

Vermont won’t have long to rest on its laurels: the Cats head on the road to face perennial power and 22nd-ranked Akron Monday night.

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