Box Score
By Matt McDermott, GoMessiah.com student manager
Grantham, PA — If the first half of Messiah's 2011 season-opener was an indication of what this team is capable of doing, it is obvious that a young, talented Falcons' squad has the ability to compete with the best in the country.
But let the second half come as a learning experience.
Messiah battled with national powerhouse Gettysburg College for 30 quality minutes, but the Bullets exploded for 11 unanswered goals in the final 33 minutes of play, cruising to a 16-3 win on a snow-plowed Anderson Field Wednesday afternoon.
The hosts came out of the games with a slow start, turning the ball over on four of their first five possessions, possible due to the fact that five underclassmen started against the sixth-ranked team in the Pre-Season USILA Coaches' Poll. But after the Bullets scored the game's first two goals, it was a connection of two of those underclassmen — sophomore Heath Kupecky from freshman Zach Bruce — which put the Falcons on the board with three minutes to play in the first quarter.
The next display of the Falcons' edge was on the defensive third, where Messiah pressured and disrupted one of 2010's top NCAA Division III offenses, limiting darts into the crease and collapsing in the seams. Senior Rod Yates and freshman Drew Cortese agitated Bullets' seniors Danno Lynch and Chris Cahill, two of the top players in the Gettysburg attack.
Despite the great defensive effort, turnovers off clears and in the attacking third proved to be too much. When the Falcons gave away possessions, the opportunities for the Bullets greatly increased.
Off a turnover in the midfield, Lynch carried to the top of the crease and shot a hard blast past senior goalie Zach Cureton, making it a 3-1 Gettysburg lead with just eight seconds remaining in the opening stanza.
It was the same story to start the second quarter.
Lynch was free on the left side of the attack and with space to shoot, pinpointed a shot to the far post in a narrow space for Gettysburg's fourth score just 51 seconds into the period.
But against a slew of returners for the nation's 12th-ranked defense, Messiah held its own, as preseason All-American J.J. Miller connected with junior James Baden on the right side, allowing Baden to shoot with just enough space for his first goal of the season at the 10:49 mark.
The action continued for the Falcons in a critical man-up possession. From the top of the crease, Miller riffled a shot on goal only to be deflected by sophomore goalie J.T. McCook. The deflection was scooped up by sophomore Kevan Schellenburg, whose pass to classmate Jess Rogers in front of the goal mouth was spot on. Rogers finished with an easy score with 4:16 left to play in the half.
Trailing by just a 6-3 score at that juncture, Messiah head coach Geof Weisenborn said that the bright spots in the first half showed him something special about his team.
“The first half showed that we have the ability to compete with the one of the best teams in the country,” Weisenborn said. “We created good opportunities and some good chances to score against a very good defense. But we failed to execute on the little things, the fundamentals. It was our passes and catching.”
But from that point on, it was all Gettysburg (1-0), as the Bullets ripped off 11 unanswered goals over the final 32 minutes of the game. Lynch and Cahill each finished with three goals apiece and senior midfielder J.C. Ward scored twice, assisting on three goals for the Bullets.
The major reasons for the disparity in the score were the 33 total turnovers for the Falcons and only converting on 19 of 32 clears.
“We didn't make good decisions with the ball and that caused turnovers,” Weisenborn said. “They pressured us in the midfield really well and they kept coming. We were forced to play too much defense and not enough offense.”
The numbers proved that ideal true, as Cureton and the Falcons faced 34 more shots than McCook and company faced for G'Burg.
“That happens when you play a top 10 team,” Weisenborn said. “They came to play strong to make a statement.”
As for the Falcons and their bright spots, Weisenborn showed optimism despite the 13-point loss.
“We are a talented team,” he said. “This was a game that showed that we can play well against a quality team for a good half. Now, we work on our consistency. If we put 60 minutes in like we played in the first half all season, we are going to be a good team. We will continue to work on the small things, the fundamentals and decision-making. We have to get better every day.”
Weisenborn and his squad will have nine days to work and improve before they travel to Collegeville, Pa. to face Ursinus College Saturday, Mar. 5. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
