Cougars Open CAA Play with Gritty Win Over Campbell

Friday, August 28

Awendaw, S.C.

7:00 PM

College of Charleston

2-0-1, 1-0-0

Campbell

0-3-0, 0-1-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Campbell	1	0	1
Col. of Charleston	2	0	2

Cougars Open CAA Play with Gritty Win Over Campbell

8/28/2026 10:29:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

AWENDAW, S.C. – The College of Charleston men's soccer team (2-0-1, 1-0-0 CAA) opened CAA play with a gritty 2-1 victory over Campbell (0-3-0, 0-1-0 CAA) Friday night at Shea Family Fields in Awendaw, S.C.

With inclement weather forcing the match to be relocated from Patriots Point, the Cougars battled through a physical contest featuring seven total cards, including two red cards, to earn the win and start conference play 1-0.

After the Cougars' first three shots came up empty, including one that rattled the crossbar, Stian Bendvold laced a shot into the top right corner of the net in the 14th minute to put the Cougars in front 1-0.

After weathering a goal and five early shots from CofC, Campbell broke through in the 22nd minute, leveling the match with a strike from just outside the box.

Battling back and forth, Michiharu Takanashi put CofC back on top as he netted his second goal of the season in the 37th minute. Takanashi snuck the ball past the outstretched arm of the keeper and into the bottom right corner of the net.

Charleston outshot Campbell 7-4 in the first half and the Cougars headed into the locker room with a one goal advantage.

Martin Brink collected his first save of match as Charleston continued to hold a 2-1 lead with 20 minutes left to play.

After a brawl in the 81st minute that led to multiple cards, including a red card for both teams, Charleston looked to close out the game playing 10-on-10.

Following a Camels corner in the 86th minute, Brink corralled Campbell's final attempt, recording his second save and helping CofC secure the 2-1 victory Friday night.

OF NOTE

Michiharu Takanashi scored his 22nd career goal and second as a Cougar.
Stian Bendvold scored his fourth career goal and first this season.
Stian Bendvold and Matt Lenert picked up assists.
Marten Brink tabbed two saves.
Charleston is now 10-4-2 all-time against Campbell.

KEY STATS

Charleston: 12 shots, 5 shots on goal, 2 saves, 4 corners
FGCU: 9 shots, 3 shots on goal, 3 saves, 6 corners

GOALS

Charleston: Stian Bendvold (14'), Michiharu Takanashi (37')
Campbell: Xander Martin (22')

ASSISTS

Charleston: Stian Bendvold (1), Matt Lenert (1)

UP NEXT — Charleston will continue CAA play Saturday, September 5 as the Cougars travel to William & Mary and face their first road test of 2026. The match will be broadcast on FloCollege and links to live stats and streams can be found on the Charleston men's soccer page on cofcsports.com.

For complete coverage of Charleston men's soccer, follow us on X (@CofCSoccer) and Instagram (@CofCSoccer).