Grantham, PA – Messiah College scored both early and late on Wednesday to defeat Hood College 5-0 and move to 5-0-1 in the Commonwealth Conference. Jack Thompson collected four points on the night and his two assists moved him into first place all-time on the Falcons' career list.
 
Thompson's record-tying assist came typical fashion for the dynamic winger, as he cut through multiple defenders to get to the left end line and slot back to the center. There, Mike Kovach had time to collect and fire past the keeper.
 
Kovach's goal doubled the Falcons' lead, which was initially set by Jeremy Payne in just the fifth minute. Kovach set up that score with a strong throw-in from behind the midfield line, leading Payne toward the box. The Falcons' leading scorer carried into the box before sending a booming shot into the far side.

The goal for Payne was his 15th of the season, with Kovach's score his seventh.

The Falcons held their 2-0 advantage through the first-half, though Hood managed five shots through the first 45 minutes. Brandon West made three saves in the first period, though neither save was made under duress.
 
Messiah raced ahead in the second-half, scoring three more times. Thompson's record-breaking assist set up the third goal, and it came in exactly the same fashion as his first helper. This time, however, it was Zack Bosshard collecting the slot to the middle of the box, sending it through for his second goal of the season.
 
The assist by Thompson gave him 47 for his career, one head of former National Player of the Year Geoff Pezon '11.
 
In the 71st minute, Thompson scored a goal himself, giving the Falcons' a 4-0 lead. The tally came off a feed from Kovach, as the senior played quick off a restart above the 18-yard line and found Thompson near the left post for a quick shot. The goal was scored so quickly that multiple players from each side were unsure what had happened.
 
Less than two minutes later, Colby Thomas muscled possession away from the Blazers' defense in the box, and sent a hard strike under the dive of keeper Henry Mills to complete the scoring.
 
Messiah finished with a 25-7 edge in shots, though Mills did his best to limit the damage with 10 saves.
 
The loss dropped Hood into a second-place tie with Lycoming in the Commonwealth, with both teams now 3-2. The Blazers are also now 8-7-0 overall.
 
Messiah will now rest through an unusual weekend off, and will next play on Tuesday, Oct. 28 when they travel to Alvernia University.
 

Messiah's All-Time Career Assist Leaders
Name	Career Assists	Grad Year
Jack Thompson	47	2015
Geoff Pezon	46	2011
Dave Brandt	35	1985
Troy Sauer	33	2003
Jim Blouch	31	1982
See full records here