GRANTHAM, Pa. - The Messiah men's soccer team won their 90th all-time game in the NCAA Tournament with a 2-0 victory over the Mount Aloysius Mounties on Saturday afternoon. Jake Lent-Koop scored in the second minute to give the Falcons an early lead before Trevor Goodling added some insurance with 30 minutes left in the contest.
 
Messiah held the Mounties to just four shots in the contest, with two coming in the final minute of play.
 
The Falcons will play the Kenyon College Lords in the Second Round tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m. on Shoemaker Field.
 
No Wasted Time
Messiah scored just 1:42 into the contest on their first shot of the match when Jake Lent-Koop connected on a header to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead. Jarec Morlote took the ball to the enline and pulled it back before delivering a cross from the right side toward Lent-Koop, who was waiting near the back post. Lent-Koop hammered his header into the side netting on the right side.
 
The goal was the second fastest score of the season for the Falcons, just 15 seconds slower than Trevor Goodling's goal (1:27) against Hood on Oct. 27.
 
Controlling the Pace
Throughout the contest, Messiah was in control of the pace. Following the early score, the Mounties made it very difficult for the Falcons to create space for shots, attempting just five more in the opening half. While Messiah attempted just six first-half shots, they held the Mounties without an attempt in the first-half.
 
After the break, Mount Aloysius attempted four shots, putting two on frame. The Falcons took seven shots in the second half for a total of 13 in the match.
 
Adding A Second
After the half, Messiah continued to pressure as they looked to add an insurance goal. In the 59th minute, the Falcons found their moment when Luke Brautigam played a curling cross to the foot of Trevor Goodling in the middle of the box. Goodling hit the one timer inside the left post for his eighth goal of the season. The tally doubled Messiah's lead to 2-0 with just over half an hour remaining in the contest.
 
As mentioned, the Mounties attempted four shots in the match, with three of the four coming in the final five minutes of play. Jared Pavlovich was tested with two of those attempts, turning both away to keep the clean sheet in a 2-0 victory.
 
Moving On
The Falcons advance to play the No. 14 Kenyon Lords in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday after the Lords earned a 4-1 victory over the Catholic Cardinals on Saturday. The Lords scored all four of their goals in the second half, including two after the Cardinals were issued a red card in the 54th minute.
 
Messiah and Kenyon will meet tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m. with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line for the winner.
 
The Falcons and Lords last met in the NCAA Tournament in the Sectional Semifinals in 2013 with Messiah earning a 2-1 victory over Kenyon en route to winning the National Championship.