CHESTER, Pa. - The Messiah men's soccer kept the Pride off the scoreboard as they carried a 1-0 lead for 80 minutes in tonight's contest. The Falcons' Lucas Kokolios scored the lone goal in the 10th minute with a left-footed rip towards the upper left post. The Falcons outshot the Pride 25-2 in the game, putting 10 attempts on frame while holding Widener to just one shot on goal. Messiah also earned an impressive 12 corners during the contest and held the Pride without a corner oprotunity.

Messiah moves to 9-2-2 on the season and 3-0-0 in the conference. The Falcons will stay on the road for their midweek matchup against the Lycoming Warriors on Oct. 16 at 4:00 p.m.

Early Messiah Strike
The Falcons set the tone early in Saturday's match, sending three shots on frame in the opening minutes against Widener. Trevor Goodling and Micah Fitz both had strikes turned away in the third and 10th minutes, respectively.

Just seconds after Fitz had a shot saved, Lucas Kokolios put Messiah on the board with a left-footed missile to the left post for his fourth goal of the season. Kokolios crashed the rebound from Fitz's shot and ran into the one-time shot. The 10th minute goal gave Messiah a 1-0 lead that they would not give back.

With his goal, Kokolios has now scored in four of the last five games.

Continued Pressure
Messiah kept their foot on the gas after taking the 1-0 lead, ripping 22 more shots over the course of the next 80 minutes. Despite the heavy pressure, Messiah was unable to add an insurance goal. In the game, the Falcons put 10 shots on goal against just one one-frame attempt from the Pride.

Widener's best chance came in the 23rd minute when Shea Morgan sent a shot to the bottom right. Nate Flanders made his only save on the night on the attempt, keeping it a 1-0 lead for the Falcons.

Messiah on the other hand, had consistent opportunities throughout the match. The Falcons sent 11 shots in the first half and 14 after the break. Their best efforts came late putting four quality looks on goal in the final 10 minutes of the game. During the stretch, Lucas Kokolios sent three shots on goal while Micah Fitz forced the Widener keeper, Jeroen Kortekaas, to make a save in the 85th minute.

Even with the late looks, Messiah was unable to add an insurance goal, but held on for the 1-0 victory.

What's Up Next
The Falcons will be back in action on Wednesday when they travel to Williamsport to take on the  Lycoming Warriors in a rematch of the last two MAC Commonwealth Championship games at 4:00 p.m. Messiah owns a 27-5-2 all-time record against the Warriors, including the conference championship game last season that ended in a 0-0 draw and a Messiah penalty kick victory.