XML Box Score Stevenson, MD - The Messiah Falcons were defeated on the road by the No. 3 Stevenson Mustangs with a score of 18-4 and fall to 6-8 overall and 3-4 in the Commonwealth Conference.
Will Franken scored the first goal of the game to give Messiah the 1-0 lead and were later down just 3-2 in the 2nd quarter, but Stevenson lived up to their ranking and went on a 15-2 run for the remainder of the game.
Franken scored two goals for the Falcons in the game, while
Andrew Harris and
Tyler Goglio added the other two.
Brooks Arnold made 18 saves in the game on 71 shots by the Mustangs.
The Falcons looked like they might have been able to hang with the Mustangs if the first quarter was a precurser to the remainder of the contest. Messiah got the opening faceoff and held possession for the opening 1:15 until they notched the opening goal. Messiah then kept Stevenson off the board for the next 11:30 of the game.
Before Stevenson could get on the board,
Nate Nester rung a shot off the crossbar that would have given the Falcons a two-goal advantage. As it were, Stevenson came out of the first quarter with a 2-1 lead.
An early 2nd quarter goal by the Mustangs and a follow-up goal by Harris brought the score to 3-2, however Stevenson then started to run away from Messiah. The Mustangs ended the first half with a 7-2 lead and a 31-8 shot advantage.
Messiah added one more goal in each of the remaining two quarters but Stevenson's onslaught continued with four goals in the third quarter and seven in the fourth. Today's game is the 12th time this season that the Mustangs have scored double-digit goals. Last season the Falcons lost 21-4 in the game on Anderson Field.
The Falcons picked up a respectable 31 ground balls in the physical, and somewhat scrappy, game on the windy afternoon. However, the Mustangs ground ball total was an incredible 69.
Chris Ruger led the way for Messiah with eight loose-ball pickups and two caused turnovers.
Messiah will finish off their regular season when they host Alvernia University this Saturday, Apr. 26, at 1:00 p.m. The Falcons will attempt to match their conference record from a year ago at 4-4 with the win.
