GRANTHAM, Pa. – Messiah men's soccer scored three goals and held off a late push by Stevens in a 3-2 win the NCAA Sectional Semifinal on Saturday afternoon. Kirby Robbins, Nick West, and Colby Thomas all scored for Messiah.
 
The win pushes Messiah into the Sectional Final tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 p.m. The Falcons will play the winner of Rochester and Amherst.
 
Pressure From the Start
Heavy and consistent rainfall forced a switch to Messiah's turf field just hours before game time, and rain fell throughout the match. The surface allowed for footing, but the ball was slowed ono the wet turf from the onset. Nevertheless, the Falcons started strong and earned the majority of territory in the early minutes.
 
Within the first 10 minutes of play Messiah found a few great looks, including a chip shot by Danny Brandt in the second minute and a deflected shot by Nick West in the sixth minute. Moments later West again came close off a header in the box that banged off the right post.
 
The Falcons' early pressure kept the Ducks on their heels, and it also helped create the game's first goal. In the 20' Nick West pushed down the left side played square to Kirby Robbins at the top of the box. Robbins took the pass middle but then quickly cut back, and as he beat his defender into the box he was pulled down for a whistle. Robbins took the penalty kick himself, and he sent it through for a 1-0 lead.
 
Messiah collected 10 shots in the first-half and held the majority of the field.
 
Counter Play
The Ducks entered the second-half with more aggressive pressure, though Messiah turned that into opportunities on the back end. In the 52' they found one such chance when Colby Thomas beat his defender down the right side and sent a serve to the far post where West jumped for a one-timer past keeper Aaron Henry.
 
The goal put Messiah up 2-0, and it also knocked Henry out of the game due to an injury; Henry, who appeared to hurt himself on Robbins' penalty kick in the first-half, was switched out for Jacob Coumans after West's score.
 
Angry Birds
The 2-0 hole forced Stevens to play with even-more urgency, and Andrew Masur created some belief with a tremendous goal with just over 20 minutes to play. His score was setup by free kick in front of the Ducks' bench. Daniel Aversano faked the kick toward the box but played square to Masur, and he rocketed a shot from 25 yards out that hit the upper 90 inside the far post. Connor Bell could do nothing to keep the perfect strike from getting through, and it was 2-1.
 
Thankfully, less than 10 minutes later, Messiah earned it back off the foot of Colby Thomas. After quickly gaining possession in the midfield Danny Brandt played Thomas forward on the right side, and he turned suddenly to go 1v1 with Coumans. Thomas faked a shot to draw a slide from Coumans, and then pushed by for a chip across the box, off the post, and into the net.
 
Late Dramatics
With less than three minutes to play Stevens again made it a one-goal game, and again it was thanks to both a free kick and a brilliant strike. A long serve off a reset was banged around the box before getting cleared out to the midfield, but Jimmy Doran ran straight on for a rocket from 30 yards out that tucked inside the right post. Bell was blocked on the shot, and it somehow traveled through a crowed box before hitting the net.
 
Messiah managed to run off most of the final minutes, but Stevens earned one last corner before the final horn. The right-sided serve was headed straight up in the box, and a second header by Nikolai Figueroa was grabbed by Connor Bell just in front of the goal.
 
In the Box
Messiah finished with a 24-13 edge in shots, but Stevens managed 10 shots in the final period. The Ducks also earned five corners in the second-half, and the teams each finished with five.
 
The goal for Robbins was his 14th, for West his 13th, and for Thomas his ninth.
 
Up Next
The Falcons will now play in the Sectional Final tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. Messiah will oppose the winner of Rochester and Amherst.