GRANTHAM, Pa. – Messiah men's soccer scored five goals and held Arcadia without a shot on goal in a 5-0 shutout in the MAC Commonwealth Semifinal on Wednesday night. The win pushed Messiah to 18-1 on the season, and Arcadia ended their season with a mark of 12-5-2.
 
The Falcons, ranked No. 3 in the nation and seeded No. 1 in the conference tournament, will now host No. 2 seed Lycoming on Saturday in the conference championship.
 
Possession and Patience
It was clear from the onset that Messiah would be able to hold possession and territory, though the challenge would be finding a clean look on goal. The Falcons collected four shots and two corners in the first 13 minutes of play, but they were turned away each time.
 
They finally broke through the Knights' crowded backfield in the 21' when Colby Thomas took possession just over midfield on a sudden transition toward the box. He carried all the way across the top of the 18, cut middle and, despite being surrounded by a host of defenders, found a wide open angle for his eighth goal of the season.
 
The goal was especially important considering the Knights' approach, and Messiah added some insurance in the 34' thanks to their second unit. Micah Fitz, who moments prior almost scored on a shot of his own, found Brit Haseltine with a short pass into the box, and Haseltine squared to his right side before putting a clean shot past keeper Chris Watson.
 
Haseltine's goal was the third of his season.

Nick Gets Two, Falcons Pull Away
Messiah's 2-0 lead quickly became 4-0 in the second-half thanks to two scores from Nick West. Less than three minutes after the break Kirby Robbins set up the first of West's goals with a quick pass into the left side of the box. West hesitated on the reception, but then changed his speed toward the post and sent a perfect shot across the frame that banged off the far post and over the goal line.  
 
Ten minutes later West scored again, this time off a fortuitous bounce. Danny Brandt came within inches of the goal himself, but his chip shot from 20 yards out tipped off the underside of the crossbar and out to the left side of the box. There, West ran onto the high bounce for a header on the open goal.
 
Messiah's fifth goal came off the foot of Zeb Cross with just over 15 minutes to play. David Alejos sent a hard serve from the left side to the six-yard line, and the defense could not clear it away before Cross pounded it through for the goal.

In the Box
As mentioned, the Falcons held the Knights without a shot on goal. Arcadia took just four shots overall, and Messiah attempted 25. The Falcons put just 11 of their shots on frame, even as they won by a large margin. The Falcons' stronghold on territory also resulted in 10 corners, their first double-digit output since Sept. 23.
 
Up Next
Messiah will now host Lycoming in the MAC Commonwealth Championship on Saturday. The Warriors defeated No. 3 seed Lebanon Valley 5-1 earlier this afternoon.
 
Game time for Saturday is TBD.