GREENSBORO, N.C. — Carolina University Men's Soccer continued its strong start to the 2026 season Wednesday evening, earning a 2-1 road victory over Guilford College at the Armfield Athletic Center.
Coming off a 1-0 season-opening victory over Ave Maria University on Saturday, August 22, the Bruins carried that momentum into their second match of the year. Carolina scored once in each half and held off a late push from Guilford to improve to 2-0-0 on the season.
The Bruins wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. Dominic Thieler opened the scoring just 2:54 into the match, finishing an opportunity set up by Kyryl Dymtryk to give Carolina an early 1-0 advantage. The goal would stand as the difference through the remainder of the opening half.
Carolina doubled its advantage in the 59th minute when Dymtryk found the back of the net for his first goal of the match, putting the Bruins ahead 2-0. Guilford responded in the 69th minute when Jake Carter scored to cut the Carolina lead to 2-1.
The Bruins' defense protected the one-goal advantage over the final 21 minutes. Guilford generated a pair of shots on goal late in the contest, but Carolina goalkeeper Andre Rojas made saves in the 83rd and 87th minutes to preserve the victory. Rojas finished the night with three saves while allowing just one goal in 90 minutes.
Carolina finished the match with a 9-7 advantage in total shots and put seven attempts on goal compared to four for Guilford. The Bruins and Quakers each recorded five corner kicks. Dymtryk led Carolina offensively with three shots, two shots on goal, one goal and one assist, while Thieler recorded two shots on goal and the game's opening goal.
"I was proud of the way our guys competed tonight," Head Coach Craig Golding said. "Guilford presented us with a tough challenge on the road, but we came out with good energy and were able to get an early goal. There are still areas where we need to improve, but starting the season with two wins gives us something positive to continue building on. Our focus now turns to another difficult road test on Saturday."
The Bruins will return to action on Saturday, August 29, when they travel to Southern Wesleyan University for a 5 p.m. kickoff.
