Messiah University

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – The No. 2 Messiah men's soccer team and the Lycoming Warriors were deadlocked at 0-0 through the first 30-plus minutes of play, but the Josh Bratager connected late in the first half to give Messiah the lead. That was all the Falcons would need, but four second-half goals lifted Messiah to the 5-0 victory.

The four second-half tallies were scored by Zackary Venus, Luke Groothoff, Isaac Schmitke, and Matt McDonald.

Messiaha outshot the Warriors 19-6 in the match, putting a dozen attempts on frame against just one from Lycoming.
 
Messiah netted four tallies in the final 25 minutes of play to earn the runaway victory. With the victory, Messiah improves to 8-0-1 on the season and will be back in action on Saturday when they host No. 17 Christopher Newport University at 6:00 p.m. on Homecoming.

Early Chances
The Falcons put together their first quality chance in the 26th minute when they earned a corner kick from the right side. A beautiful delivery from the right side found the head of Jake Lent-Koop on the back post. A strong header went right to the keeper and the Warriors kept it a scoreless match for the time being.
 
Less than 10 minutes later, Messiah had another chance in the 34th minute. Matt McDonald sent a left footed cross from the right side toward the back post, but his delivery was just in front of his intended target and went out of touch.
 
With just over six minutes remaining in the half, Messiah got on the board. In the 39th minute, a Lycoming defender accidentally headed a ball toward the right corner. Zackary Venus beat a defender to the ball and was loose down the right side. Venus then sent a beautiful ball to a streaking Josh Bratager at the top of the box. Bratager had made his run unmarked from the midfield. With a defender trailing behind, Bratager collected the feed and slotted a ball inside the right post for the 1-0 Messiah lead with just over six minutes remaining in the half.
 
Second-Half Explosion
That 1-0 Messiah lead held well into the second half after the first 21 minutes of the half went scoreless. In the 67th minute, Messiah earned a corner kick with Grant Johnson sending a curling ball from the right side past the back post. Zackary Venus made an athletic move to get a foot on the delivery and find the Falcons' second goal of the evening.
 
Luke Grootoff added some insurance in the 76th minute with a shot from inside the box. Groothoff carried possession through the top of the box around a defender before finding his window to slot a shot past the keeper for the 3-0 lead.
 
The insurance just kept coming for the Falcons. In the 81st minute, Zackary Venus kept a ball in bounds on the right side and pushed possession to the end line. Venus played a ball across the goal mouth for Isaac Schmitke. Front pointblank range, Schmitke knocked home his first career tally to give Messiah a 4-0 lead.
 
With just over a minute remaining, Matt McDonald put the icing on top of the 5-0 victory with a goal on a breakaway on the right side. McDonald's tally was his 10th of the season. He has now scored in eight of Messiah's nine matches.
 
What's Up Next
The Falcons will return home for their homecoming game against the No. 17 Cristopher Newport Captains at 6:00 p.m. on Shoemaker Field. The Captains currently hold a 7-1-0 overall record and are winners in their last five matches. Christopher Newport has only allowed three goals this season.