Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
1-0-0, 0-0-0
Air Force
0-1-0, 0-0-0
Army Wins Season Opener Against Air Force
August 24, 2023 | Men's Soccer
West Point, NY – For the first time since 2016, the Army men's soccer team beat Air Force in a thrilling 3-2 game at Malek Stadium on Thursday night.
How it Happened
Army started off strong with junior forward Brandon Bryant getting a quality shot on goal just 53 seconds into the game.
After some back-and-forth action, the Black Knights were issued a yellow card drawn by sophomore midfielder Jack Meyer. This resulted in an Air Force free kick which was safely headed away from the goal by Army.
Captain Nick Atkinson almost set up another scoring opportunity in the ninth minute sending a pass right in front of the Falcons goal to his teammate who was just out of reach.
The first goal of the game came in the 17th minute as Air Force fifth-year senior Luke Hill put one past Army goalkeeper Harrison Faulkner.
The Black Knights put together a rapid response as freshman Jubril Bamgbala scored his first collegiate goal in the 26th minute off a free kick by senior captain Cooper Warren.
Just over a minute after the Black Knights goal, Air Force goal scorer Luke Hill tallied his second of the night reclaiming the lead for the Falcons.
With high-intensity action from both squads, Army was able to tie the game late in the first half with a goal from Jack Meyer in the 39th minute.
Army kept the pressure on as they created a scoring chance right away to start the second half. Black Knight Drew Clement was able to break the tie with a perfectly aimed shot to the top left corner assisted by fellow goal scorer Jack Meyer.
The rest of the game kept a high pace with chances at both ends but eventually resulted in an Army season-opening win with a final score of 3-2.
Coach Brian Plotkin shared his thoughts after the win saying "Really proud of our guys for their effort tonight. To come back from a goal down twice and find a third to win the game shows their ability to respond and get on to the next play. We will enjoy this win tonight and be back to training tomorrow for our next game on Monday."
Army's next matchup will be at La Salle University on Monday at 6:00 PM.
Follow Along
For complete coverage of Army West Point Men's Soccer, follow the Black Knights on
Twitter: @ArmyWP_MSoccer
Instagram: @armywp_msoccer, and online at www.goarmywestpoint.com.
Team Stats
Luke Hill (2)
GOAL by AFA Hill, Luke.
17:01
Jubril Bamgbala (1)
Assisted By: Cooper Warren
GOAL by ARMY Bamgbala, Jubril Assist by Warren, Cooper.
26:09
Luke Hill (2)
Assisted By: Thaddaeus Dewing , Remi Smith
GOAL by AFA Hill, Luke Assist by Dewing, Thaddaeus and Smith, Remi.
27:33
Joey Hickson (1)
Assisted By: Nick Atkinson
GOAL by ARMY Hickson, Joey Assist by Atkinson, Nick.
39:15
Drew Clement (1)
Assisted By: Joey Hickson
GOAL by ARMY Clement, Drew Assist by Hickson, Joey.
58:35
