GRANTHAM, Pa. -
Nick West tallied a goal in each half for the No. 1 Messiah men's soccer team as the Falcons moved to the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament with a 2-0 victory over the No. 25 Johns Hopkins Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon. The Falcons advance to the Third Round of the Tournament next Saturday against the winner of the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons. Messiah has been selected to host the Third and Fourth Rounds on Shoemaker Field next weekend. More information on the upcoming weekend will follow on GoMessiah.com later this week.
After being held scoreless in four-straight games leading into Sunday's match - his longest stretch without a goal since a four-game stretch during the middle of September, 2017 - West found the back of the net off a header in the 23rd minute. The goal was against the run of play and gave the Falcons' a 1-0 lead midway through the opening period.
In the 51st minute, West struck again with a touch from
Justin Brautigam springing him free down the left sideline. West blew past a defender and cut to the middle of the box for his 26th goal of the season.
Messiah was out shot in the match, 9-7, but held the majority of possession for the final two-thirds of the match.
Against the Run of Play
The Johns Hopkins Blue Jays controlled the opening moments of the match, winning the territory battle for stretches of the first third of the contest. Johns Hopkins registered four shots in the first 20 minutes of the game while the Falcons attempted two during the same stretch. The Blue Jays had the better of chances in the opening third of the match, but it was Messiah that struck first.
In the 23rd minute, The Falcons got the ball out to
Shay Quintin on the left sideline. Quintin delivered a ball to the top of the box for
Brit Haseltine, who headed it forward to
Nick West on the top of the six near the left post. The Johns Hopkins' keeper came off his line to get to make a play on the ball, but West beat him to the punch, getting a head on the pass from Haseltine and directing it into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.
It was the first goal for West in four games after he tallied in 15-straight in the middle of the regular season.
Adding Insurance
West's goal was the only score of the first-half for either side and the Falcons took the 1-0 lead into the half. West doubled the Messiah advantage just over five minutes into the second-half when
Justin Brautigam touched a ball forward to West down the left-side. West blew past the only defender in his path before cutting toward the middle of the box and slotting a shot into an empty net.
The goal was the 26th tally on the season for West, just one behind Joseph Fala of Ramapo for the national lead in goals scored.
Another Shutout
Messiah was out shot for the first time this season with the Blue Jays taking nine shots against seven for the Falcons.
Connor Bell made four saves between the pipes to lead Messiah to their eighth-straight shutout. The Falcons have not allowed a goal in over a month.
Moving On
With the 2-0 victory, Messiah advances to take on the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons next weekend in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Falcons and Red Dragons opened the 2018 season with a 2-2 draw on Shoemaker Field on Aug. 31. Messiah outshot Cortland 19-11 in that early fall meeting, with
Brit Haseltine and
Joseph King connecting for the Falcons' goals.
