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Grantham, PA – Messiah College scored four goals on Saturday, shutting out Medaille College 4-0 to move to 2-0 on the young season. The Falcons outshot the Mavericks 24 to three and dominated possession throughout the entire game, scoring twice in each half en route to the decision.
The Falcons' victory came one day after they needed to recover from a sudden score to avoid an upset at the hands of Utica College. On Saturday, the Falcons' made their own early statement, scoring just 71 seconds in the match when Joshua Wood put a header on Jack Thompson's left-sided serve and notched his first goal of the season.
Messiah added their second goal just 20 minutes later when Danny Brandt followed up a shot from teammate Bryant Myer and punched in a score from the front of the goal. Myers' shot came from the top of the 18-yard line but was saved by keeper Nick Augustyn.
"I thought we did some good things in the first half," said Messiah head coach Brad McCarty. "Our starting group has been good with movement and choices, and our second unit has been contributing well early on."
Medaille College (0-2) went without a shot until the 42nd minute, demonstration for how strong the Falcons played on both sides of the field.
"Our ability to keep the ball really limited (Medaille's) chances," McCarty said, reflecting on his team's defensive effort. "Carter Robbins and Matt Kyne have played well and can handle the ball out of the air, and Josh Kremers and Drew Frey are really steady."
Messiah's strong play continued into the second-half, where they would fire off 10 more shots and continue to limit the Mavericks' possession in their attacking third.
Benji Kennel seemed to break to score open in the 77th minute when he stepped into a shot just inside the top of the 18-yard line; Jeremy Payne picked up the assist for feeding Kennel to his shot. For Kennel, it was his second goal in as many days.
Messiah added a penalty kick score in the 81st minute to finalize the scoring.
"We've played two competitive opponents that have forced us to grow," said McCarty, talking about the Falcons' first two games with Utica and Medaille. "Both our first unit and our second unit have room to improve, but we're learning what we want. We just need to keep getting better."
Messiah moves to 2-0 with the win and will be off next weekend when they travel to Oneonta State for games on Friday and Saturday.
