MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - The Millersville men's soccer team earned a 2-1 victory over the Shepherd Rams in Wednesday afternoon's matchup.

The Marauders started the game strong by applying consistent pressure on the Rams' defense. Millersville capitalized in the seventh minute when Zander Leik scored a put-back goal following a missed shot by Roy Parkyn, who was credited with the assist. Leik is now tied with Parkyn for the team lead in goals, with five, and has scored in back-to-back games.
 

MSOC: Mauraders take an early lead, Zander Leik scores off a rebound goal pic.twitter.com/NNCGXbop5U

— Millersville Marauders (@VilleMarauders) October 8, 2025

Millersville continued to execute offensively, recording seven shots in the first half. Shepherd was unable to respond and entered the second half trailing, 1-0.

Shepherd opened the second half with strong offensive pressure, recording two shots that were saved by Millersville goalkeeper Gavin Massimi. Massimi finished the match with four total saves.

Millersville gained momentum late in the second half, earning three corner kicks within a four-minute span but failing to convert on any of them. The Marauders caught a break when Shepherd committed a handball in the goal box, awarding Millersville a penalty kick. Matias Schmidt capitalized on the opportunity, placing the ball into the right corner of the net to extend the lead to two goals.

Shepherd attempted a late comeback, scoring with four minutes remaining in the match; however, the Marauders' defense held strong in the final moments to secure the victory.

With the win, Millersville improved to 5-3-1 overall and 2-1 in PSAC East play. The Marauders return to action on Saturday, traveling to Bloomsburg for a 1 p.m. matchup.

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

• Leik has scored in four of the last five games
• Schmidt scored his third goal of the season
• Millersville outshot Shepherd 12-10

THOUGHTS FROM HEAD COACH STEVE WIDDOWSON

• What are your thoughts on the early attacking pressure that led to Zander's goal and helped set the tone for the rest of the match? "I thought we had some really good opportunities early that we did not capitalize on but at least we found one goal to take the lead. When we moved the ball and combined we did well but did not do that often enough. This is something we need to improve upon. We get in good areas but don't capitalize on them enough."
• What can the boys learn from this match, that can carry this momentum into Bloomsburg? "We need to simply learn to relax and play. I think we are over thinking things and making our lives too difficult. If we relax and just play to our capabilities we will be great. It's my job to find a way to get the boys to that place. They just need to free their minds and trust themselves. I think that's the biggest deterrent right now, they aren't trusting themselves and are lacking in communication. If we just go play, we can be great. We just need to find out when and how we get to that place."