MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - It was an electric atmosphere at Pucillo Field Saturday as the Millersville men's soccer team came away with a key, 2-1 PSAC East win over East Stroudsburg.
Millersville started with a goal in the 16th minute of play. Senior Bob Hennessey scored his seventh of the season off an assist from Zander Leik. After a few deflections in the midfield, Leik gained possession and quickly found Hennessey running parallel up the field. Hennessey then settled and placed a low line drive past the reach of ESU goalkeeper Brayden Evans.
Looking for a more comfortable lead, Millersville continued on the attack. With just under four minutes left in the first half, Josh Rodriguez and Richy Valverde moved the ball up the field, creating a two-on-two against the ESU defense. Valverde split the defenders, sending Rodriguez into the box to finish the play with a goal just inside the near post. Millersville went into the second half with a 2-0 lead.
ESU, holding on the playoff hopes, did not go down without a fight. Just three minutes into the second half Colby Raymond scored his eighth goal of the season with an assist from Ignasi Cucurella. The Warriors continued on the attack, firing six more shots on goal. Goalkeeper Travis Holiday proved today why he rightfully earned the latest PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Week honor, making four excellent saves to maintain the Millersville lead.
The Marauders have now won four consecutive PSAC East games.
GAME NOTES
- With the win over ESU, the Marauders remain in contention for the PSAC East title. They stayed tied with West Chester at 6-1-2, while Bloomsburg has an additional point at 6-1-3.
- Five yellow cards were dispersed to East Stroudsburg players during the second half.
- 28 fouls were called throughout the entirety of the game. 14 of those on Millersville and 14 on ESU.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
POSTGAME REACTION FROM STEVE WIDDOWSON
- Overall thoughts: "Very proud of the effort today overall. It was a tough game against a hungry and strong opponent. I thought the first half was very good and we executed our game plans really well. The second half got a bit more scrappy and we lost our control for a while but we showed good resiliency to work through that period. We then finished the game very well and showed great composure."
- On the physicality and hustle of the team throughout the season: "Our work rate has generally been very good all year. The physical side of the game is something we have struggled with at times but also worked on a lot. We aren't the biggest team but need to learn how to cope with that deficiency. I think we did much better with it today but there will be bigger tests ahead that we need to be ready for."
UP NEXT
- Millersville begins a two game road swing against West Chester and Bloomsburg on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
