Freshman defender Brayden Smith (West Forsyth) and senior midfielder Jamie Dell (Chapel Hill) each scored a goal in the second half as No. 28 UNC-Wilmington (11-3-2, 4-2-1) celebrated senior night with a 2-0 Colonial Athletic Association victory over Hofstra (9-5-2, 4-2-0) on Saturday night.
With their second consecutive shutout victory, the Seahawks moved into first place in the CAA standings with 13 points. Hofstra, which lost for the second time in the last three matches, dropped to second place in the standings.
The Seahawks took a 1-0 lead with 22:01 left in regulation when Smith headed in a pass from senior defender Jacob Vancompernolle for the first goal of his college career.
With 15:35 remaining in regulation, Dell upped the advantage to 2-0 by scoring his team-leading eighth goal of the season off a pass from junior forward Nathaniel Goodwin.
Junior goalkeeper Sam Williams made one save to earn his seconds straight victory as the Seahawks outshot the Pride by an 8-5 margin.
UNCW holds a one-point advantage over Hofstra for top spot in conference heading into the regular season finale at Drexel on Saturday, Nov. 1.
