Grantham, PA — If fifth-ranked Messiah's recent play was an illness, Saturday's Homecoming Weekend crowd of nearly 3,000 screaming fans was chicken noodle soup.
Following a three-game stretch that produced a pair of losses and a tie, Messiah (10-2-2, 2-1) came out with a dominant performance against MAC Commonwealth Conference foe Lycoming College, taking a 3-0 lead at the half and never looking back in a 5-0 decision at Shoemaker Field.
The win not only stopped an unprecedented slide, but kept the Falcons in the mix within the upper echelons of the league standings. With Lycoming (9-4-1, 3-1) entering the game boasting a 3-0 conference record, a Messiah loss would have pitted the Falcons in — gasp — the bottom half of the league standings.
Following a contest that produced just three total shots for the visiting Warriors, however, that ideal would remain far-fetched.
“We needed this, obviously,” said Dave Brandt, Messiah head coach. “We needed to get the monkey off our back. We were able to open (Lycoming) up and get opportunities tonight, and we finished those opportunities. It's not like we haven't gotten opportunities in other games. We've just struggled finishing.”
After out-shooting Lebanon Valley College by a 20-9 count in a 1-2 loss Wednesday and bettering The College of New Jersey's attempts by a 22-4 difference in a 1-1 tie a week ago, Messiah made certain to put its chances on frame Saturday against Lyco. Extra effort paid off just over 13 minutes in, as senior Brett Faro crossed a ball into the box from the right wing. As the ball appeared to be tailing across the endline off the far side of the goal, junior Calvin Todd flipped the ball back across the goal mouth, landing at the feet of senior Brett Crompton.
Crompton then sent a low liner back to the far post, his shot caroming off the right pole before settling into the left corner of the net for a 1-0 Messiah lead.
The Falcons would hang on to its one-goal lead for the next 24 minutes, as Lycoming packed its defensive third of the field, hoping for a counter attack.
It was Messiah that put a run on the Warriors' defenders at the 38:08 mark, however, as freshman Derek Black corralled a deflected ball just outside Lycoming's 18-yard box. Dribbling in unmarked, Black beat the keeper in a one-on-one opportunity to push his team's lead to 2-0.
Freshman Danny Thompson was fouled on the right side of the Warriors' box just moments later, setting up a free kick that would equate to the Falcons' third score of the night. Pezon sent an arching ball into the frame that settled at the feet of senior defender JD Binger, who had crept directly into the heart of the frame.
Binger calmly touched the ball into the back of the net at the 43:40 mark, helping the Falcons to the aforementioned 3-0 lead at the intermission.
“(Scoring) the first goal in soccer is always big,” Brandt said of his team's start. “Probably even a little bit bigger in a situation like today where (Lycoming) was intent on defending. That makes it tough to score.”
Brandt's team would not need much time to tack on its fourth score of the night, however, as Todd was rewarded for his constant effort just 2:10 into the second stanza. Making a run from the left wing, an unmarked Todd collected a cross from Black at the back post, calmly touching a shot past diving Lyco keeper David Bald.
Messiah would add an insurance goal at the game's 57:18 mark, when senior Josh Sanders was checked hard inside Lycoming's penalty area while making a run. Pezon was called upon to take the penalty kick, blasting it by Bald despite the Warriors' keeper getting a hand on the effort.
Messiah finished with a 17-3 difference in shots on the evening and an 8-0 disparity in corner kicks, while eight of the Falcons' shots were on goal. Brandt utilized a three-keeper lineup for the first time this year in the win, staring junior Jared Clugston (45 minutes, one save) and bringing in senior Nick Blossey (37:23) and sophomore Kyle Fulks (7:37, one save) for second-half duties.
“We were a little sharper and a little more patient tonight than we have been,” Brandt said. “We needed to make sure we returned to the basics of what our program stands for on and off the field. I thought we did a good job of that, and that's what we need to continue to concentrate on.”
Messiah will next take a one-game hiatus from conference play, as the squad will travel to Grove City College Tuesday afternoon for a 3 p.m. contest. The Falcons will then travel to league foe Arcadia University Saturday.
