DALLAS, Pa. – Luke Groothoff and Nick West each scored a brace on Saturday afternoon to help lift No. 1 Messiah men's soccer to the 4-1 victory over the Misericordia Cougars on the road. West scored his 12th goal of the season in the 30th minute to put the Falcons on the board.
 
After a Misericordia goal 10 minutes into the second-half tied the match at 1-1 it was Luke Groothoff's turn to steal the show. The freshman scored a header goal in the 64th minute to give Messiah the lead back before scoring again less than five minutes later by beating the keeper high.
 
Nick West put the cherry on top of the victory for the Falcons with a rip from outside the box with his right foot in the 88th minute. West has now scored 13 goals on the season and has tallied in each of the last seven games for Messiah.
 
The Falcons move to 7-0-1 on the season with the victory and will next take the field on Wednesday when they host Elizabethtown in the Marshmallow Bowl on Shoemaker Field at 7:00 p.m.

First-Half Lead
The Falcons brought a heavy amount of early pressure with seven shots in the first 10 minutes of the contest. Despite the barrage of shots and four corner kicks, Messiah was unable to break the seal and put a goal on the board.

The pressure continued throughout the remainder of the half, as the Falcons took a total of 18 shots in the period, including 11 attempts on frame. Only one of those attempts found the back of the net. In the 30th minute, Jonathan Groothoff found Nick West at the top of the box from the right-side. West unleashed a left-footed rip to the upper 90 that beat the keeper and gave Messiah a 1-0 lead with 15 minutes remaining in the half.

Back to Even
The 1-0 Messiah advantage held until the early portion of the second-half. Less than 10 minutes into the second period, Misericordia executed a little give-and-go on the left side that led to the equalizer from Nick Ruggiero after a low centering pass by Ethan Aigeldinger.

The goal was Ruggiero's second of the season.

Finishing Touch
Immediately following the equalizer, the Falcons turned the pressure back up. Messiah registered six shots and three corner kicks in the next ten minutes. The stretch ended in the first career goal for freshman Luke Groothoff. A service off a corner kick found the head of Lucas Kokolios, and while his initial header found the cross bar Groothoff was there for the follow-up header that gave Messiah the lead back at 2-1 in the 64th minute.

Not even five minutes after his first career goal, Groothoff collected his second score to double the Messiah lead. In the 69th minute, Groothoff collected a loose ball in the box and took a touch to his left to create some space before roofing a shot that beat the keeper up high.

With a 3-1 lead, Nick West put a explanation mark on the victory with a right-footed cannon from just above the box on the left to the far right post. His attempt found the twine and bumped the Messiah advantage to three at 4-1.

West continues is torrid scoring pace to begin the season. Through eight games, West has tallied 13 goals and entered Saturday tied for the national lead in goals scored.
 
What's Up Next
With the victory, Messiah advances to 7-0-1 on the season and give the Falcons seven-straight victories. Messiah will next take the field in the annual Marshmallow Bowl against long-time rival Elizabethtown College on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. Last season the match was a 2-1 overtime thriller in Elizabethtown with Kirby Robbins scoring the game winner in the 93rd minute for the Falcons.