LEXINGTON, Va. – In a rematch of last year's Elite Eight Game, the No. 5 Messiah men's soccer team earned a little redemption as well as a statement victory with a 4-1 win over the No. 3 Washington and Lee Generals on their home field. Messiah wasted little time getting on the board, with Matt McDonald scoring the first of his two goals off a corner kick in the 12th minute.
 
Just six minutes later Ben Lefever was on the end of a Luke Brautigam cross that doubled the Falcons' lead to 2-0. In the 31st minute, Patrick Lee stepped on the field for the first time as a Falcon and in the same minute he connected on his first career goal to bump Messiah's lead to 3-0.
 
That's where things stood at the break, but Matt McDonald added a fourth Messiah tally in the opening minute of the second half to balloon the Falcons' lead to 4-0 over a team that knocked them out of the 2021 season by a 3-1 final.
 
The Generals got on the board in the 74th minute off a tally from Matteo Adler, but it was not enough as the Falcons earned a 4-1 season-opening victory. In the win, Messiah outshot the Generals 15-5, putting eight of their shots on goal against just one for Washing and Lee.
 
Messiah also out cornered the Generals 8-0, earning six in the opening half.
 
The Falcons will remain in Virginia until their second game of the season on Saturday when they travel to Lynchburg for a 2:00 p.m. mateine against the University of Lynchburg Hornets.
 
Early Fireworks
Matt McDonald got the Falcons on the board early off a well-placed corner kick from Grant Johnson. The kick came in from the right and found the foot of a waiting McDonald, who powered it past the keeper for a quick 1-0 lead just over 10 minutes into the contest.
 
In the 18th minute, Messiah quickly worked the ball forward from the midfield, carrying possession down the left-side of the pitch. Luke Brautigam sent a cross around the Generals' back line for a streaking Ben Lefever, who finished off his first tally of the season to double the Falcons' lead to 2-0 less than halfway through the opening period.
 
Lee Connects in First Action
With the Falcons holding a 2-0 lead 30 minutes into the contest, Messiah brought in a fresh group. Among the five substitutes was Patrick Lee. Less than a minute after stepping on the field for the first time, Lee was on the receiving end of a Luke Groothoff feed that led him behind the Washington and Lee defense. One-on-one with the keeper, Lee finished off the score beating him to the near post on the right side for a 3-0 Messiah lead.
 
The Falcons held that 3-0 lead through halftime with the Generals attempting just two first-half shots. Neither of their first-half attempts went on frame.
 
McDonald Finds a Second
The Falcons started the second half even faster than the first, scoring exactly one minute into the period on a Matt McDonald strike the snuck inside the right post. McDonald and the Falcons won possession in the midfield and quickly went forward for the tally to build a 4-0 lead.
 
Washington and Lee put their first, and only, shot on frame in the 74th minute with Matteo Adler scoring to make it a 4-1 game.
 
Messiah put three shots on frame and held the Generals to just one shot across the final 15 minutes, earning the 4-1 victory.
 
What's Up Next
With the victory, Messiah improves to 1-0 on the season. They will be back in action on Saturday afternoon when they take on the University of Lynchburg at 2:00 p.m. in Lynchburg, Va. Messiah is 2-1-1 all-time against Lynchburg, including a 2-1 overtime victory in the 2010 National Championship Game.