NORFOLK, Va. -- On a windy, rain-soaked Friday night at the ODU Soccer Complex, the 16th-ranked Old Dominion men’s soccer team defeated UAB, 3-1, in the Monarchs’ Conference USA home opener.

ODU (5-1-1, 1-0-1 C-USA) scored three first half goals, one from Niko Klosterhalfen and two from Jesse Miralrio, to surge past UAB (3-6-0, 0-2-0 C-USA).

Klosterhalfen opened the scoring in the seventh minute, collecting a rebound in the box and putting away a shot into the lower right corner. The goal was Klosterhalfen’s fourth of the year, tying for him for the team lead with Josue Henriquez.

The Monarchs then received two goals from Miralrio to extend their lead to three. In the 20th minute, Miralrio recovered a loose ball just outside the six and slipped a shot over the head of the diving UAB keeper, pushing the ODU lead to 2-0. Miralrio netted his second score of the match in the 35th minute, finishing a Klosterhalfen cross into the lower left corner.

The Monarchs carried the 3-0 lead into halftime, and held a 9-3 advantage in shots at the break. 

In the second half, UAB’s Ian Svantesson scored the Blazers’ lone goal in the 81st minute, firing a shot from 25 yards out that deflected off of a player and skipped past ODU goalkeeper Alex Tiesenhausen. Tiesenhausen finished the match with seven saves, tying a season-high.

The Monarchs outshot UAB, 12-11, in the match and held a 7-6 edge in corner kicks. Ryan Condotta led the Monarchs with five shots, including two on goal.