EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. — In a rainy PSAC East contest against Shippensburg, the ESU men's soccer team defeated the Raiders 6-1 on Senior Day, improving to 6-3-2 overall and 3-0-1 in conference play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Warriors started the game strong, getting a pair of clean looks right in front of the goal. Shots from Seara and sophomore forward Jake van Lierop each went high, as the Raiders pushed back with a couple of chances of their own. Forward Cam Henry had a shot attempt miss high and right, while forward Julias Dogan had a point-blank chance he pushed past the left post.
- ESU opened the scoring about 31 minutes into the half, breaking the scoreless tie off a corner kick. Sophomore midfielder Owen Rennie sent the ball in, as Kiernan sat towards the back of the crowd on the goal line in position to corral the cross for an easy tap-in goal, his third of the year.
- Buman-Uchral was able to double ESU's lead with just under two minutes remaining before the half. Freshman defender Mak Zerjav settled a cross that passed through the box, finding the senior forward open at the top. Buman-Uchral took one touch before striking the ball with his right foot, beating Shippensburg's goalkeeper to the bottom right corner to make it 2-0.
- The Warriors put the game out of reach with a strong start to the second half, netting two more goals in the first 13 minutes. Seara got the ball outside the top of the box, dribbling in and taking a shot that was blocked. After the rebound came back to his foot, he was able to slip through the last line of defense and get one-on-one with the goalie, burying the close-range chance five minutes in. Seven minutes later, Arias and sophomore forward Jeter Cardona pressured the Raiders' Braedon Johnson into a turnover deep in the Shippensburg defensive end, creating a chance immediately. Cardona dribbled in towards the middle of the field, finding Seara in the box. As Seara cut down, he left it for Arias near the outer corner, curving in a shot just inside the right post for a tic-tac-toe goal.
- The Raiders got one goal back after a cross-crease pass from Zac Slevin made it over to Kyle Ganley, but that's all Shippensburg would create on offense. ESU added two late goals to pad the differential, as van Lierop and junior forward Parker Mork each scored a goal off assists from sophomore defender Filip Statescu, making it a 6-1 final score in favor of the Warriors.
GAME NOTES
- ESU's six goals were the most the Warriors have scored in a game under HC Tom Mustac. It was their first time netting six goals since Sept. 3 in the 2021 season opener at Felician, and their most goals in a PSAC East game since beating Shippensburg 7-1 at home on Oct. 30, 2019.
UP NEXT
The Warriors' next game is against the final PSAC East team they haven't played yet, Bloomsburg. ESU hosts the Huskies at 7 p.m. this Wednesday, Sept. 30, at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
