LYNCHBURG, Va. (Men's Soccer) – The No. 1 Messiah men's soccer team prevailed in its NCAA First Round matchup, cruising past Baruch College with a commanding 6-0 win at the University of Lynchburg. The Falcons used six different goal scorers to earn their First Round victory, scoring four of their six tallies in the first half of play. The goal scorers included Ben Lefever, Matt McDonald, Sam Phillips, Stefan Leitzel, Ben Vollmer, and Harrison Keator.
The Falcons, with their 94th all-time NCAA Tournament victory, advance to play Ohio Northern University in the Second Round tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m.
Messiah was dominant, outshooting the Bearcats 33-1 while not allowing a shot on target. The Falcons did not wait long to get on the board, scoring their opening tally at the 10:14 mark when Lefever turned on a right-footed shot just outside of the six-yard box to beat the keeper. With an early 1-0, edge, Messiah continued to apply the offensive pressure, scoring just eight minutes later when McDonald tallied his 13th goal of the season to double the advantage. The forward found himself isolated on the left wing with a Bearcat defender, eventually cutting in to his dominant right foot and curling a shot to the far post past the outstretched grasp of the goalkeeper. Just over 18 minutes into their First Round contest, the Falcons had already celebrated twice, and they were just getting started.
The Falcons tacked on two more goals before the half concluded as both of those goals came in the final three minutes of first-half action. With 2:40 left in the half, Messiah won a free kick in a dangerous spot just outside of the penalty box on the right wing. Ethan Gregory was on the ball, playing a crafty, grounded ball to Phillip's right foot as the first-year forward converted for an easy finish to increase the Falcon lead to three goals. Messiah was not finished, adding its fourth tally with just 25 ticks left when Leitzel got himself on the score card. It was another free kick opportunity with the ball placed on the left side of the box, just 10 yards from the end line. Gregory collected his second assist when he curled in a dangerous ball front the keeper which was finished with a dynamic run from Leitzel, his fourth goal of the season. At the half, Messiah led 4-0.
The second half featured two more Falcon goals, highlighted by Vollmer's first-career tally. Vollmer scored just three minutes into the second half to increase Messiah's lead to 4-0. The fourth goal of the afternoon was off a short corner set piece. Caleb Aldridge started the sequence, finding Jarec Morlote's feet, who whipped in a ball just in front of the goalkeeper. Vollmer timed his run perfectly, crashing in to sneak a header to the far post. Both Aldridge and Morlote were credited with assists on the goal. With a dominating 5-0 lead, Messiah tacked on one more goal at the 82:08 mark when Keator buried a floating ball to the back post from Phillips for his second goal of the season. Just 7:52 remained on the clock when the Falcons found the back of the net for the sixth time of the afternoon, and the score line would hold 6-0 as Messiah earned its 20th win of the season.
The game was controlled by Messiah's offense throughout the entire 90 minutes, coupled with strong organization to allow just one Baruch shot. With the win, Messiah clinched a 20-win season in consecutive seasons.
What's Next
No. 1 Messiah (20-0-1) makes its 31st NCAA Second Round appearance in program history tomorrow, clashing with the Ohio Northern Polar Bears at 3:00 p.m. at Lynchburg University in Lynchburg, Va.