READING, Pa. - Nick West scored in the fourth minute of play on Saturday against the Alvernia Golden Wolves to give No. 2 Messiah men's soccer an early advantage en route to a 3-0 victory. In addition to West's early tally, Messiah found goals from Justin Brautigam and Samuel Ruiz Plaza in the 16th and 72nd minutes, respectively.

Despite the 3-0 victory on the scoreboard, the match featured opportunities for both sides with the Falcons holding just a 21-15 advantage in shots (11-10 on goal).

With the victory, Messiah moves to 12-0-2 overall and remains a perfect 5-0-0 in the MAC Commonwealth.

Early Lead
It took the Falcons less than four minute to find the back of the net, with the nation's leading goal scoring striking on a free kick in the fourth minute. After a foul from just outside the box, Nick West stepped up and delivered his 21st goal of the season to put Messiah on the board with a 1-0 lead.

With a goal in the game, West has now scored in 13-straight games, extending the program record that he already owns and inching closer to the all-time Division III record of 15-straight matches with a goal.

Just seven minutes later, West looked to add a second goal in the early minutes of the game, but a shot in the 11th minute rattled of the post. Four minutes after West hit the post, Messiah did end up doubling their lead thanks to a goal from Justin Brautigam in the 16th minute. Jonathan Groothoff sent a cross to David Alejos who headed the cross to Brautigam for the strike.

The goal was Brautigam's fourth of the seaosn and gave Messiah a 2-0 lead in the early moments of the match.

Handling Pressure
Including the early goals, the Falcons controlled the majority of the first-half, taking a total of 11 shots against just two for the Golden Wolves. Despite trailing by two at halftime, Alvernia came out swinging in the second period outshooting Messiah 13-10 in the final 45 minutes.

With 13 shots in the half, Alvernia put six attempts on frame, forcing Conner Bell to make a half dozen saves in the half and eight total in the match. The eight saves was a new career high for Bell, breaking his previous career-high of seven that he set earlier this season against Montclair State on Sept. 8.

Late Insurance
While Alvernia held an advantage in shots in the second-half, it was Messiah that found the only tally of the half with a score coming from Samuel Ruiz Plaza in the 72nd minute. Ruiz Plaza made it a 3-0 game with a shot that deflected off the right post and into the left corner of the goal. The goal was his third of the season and gave Messiah their eventual winning margin of 3-0.

What's Up Next
With the victory, Messiah improves to 12-0-2 overall and moves to 5-0-0 in the conference. The Falcons will put their perfect conference record on the line when they host the No. 14 Lycoming Warriors (12-1-1 overall, 4-0-0 conference) on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. on Shoemaker Field. The Warriors enter Wednesday's match on a school-record 10-game winning streak.