HARRISONBURG, Virginia — A pair of second half goals led the Marietta College men's soccer team to a 2-0 win at Eastern Mennonite University Saturday (Sept. 7) afternoon. The Pioneers improve to 2-1 on the season, while EMU falls to 0-2-1 on the season.
"I'm proud of the boys and their willingness to adapt. We were dominant in possession in the first half, but with nothing to show for it," Marietta head coach
Joe Bergin said. "No panic at halftime, just some candid discussions that led to a bit more direct style in the second half and it paid dividends with two nice goals. We need to be ready to play a really good Bridgewater team tomorrow so there is no down time."
Lee Miller (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville) broke the scoreless tie in the 63rd minute. Miller scored the game winner on an assist from
Reggie Grayek (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary College Prep.).
Eli Swirsky (Solon, Ohio/Gilmour Academy) added an insurance goal in the 80th minute off an assist from keeper
Joey Backhaus (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield).
Marietta opened the match with some good offensive pressure. The Pioneers earned four early corners and a shot from Miller hit the post in the first ten minutes of the match.
Defensively, the Pioneers limited EMU to just six shots overall and only two shots on goal. Backhaus notched the clean sheet, his first of the season, making two saves. Marietta's back line was anchored by
Christopher Rodriguez (Northridge, Calif./Daniel Pearl Magnet),
Sean Fournier (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta), and
Connor Heramb (Willoughby, Ohio/Willoughby South).
Sam Holthaus (Columbus, Ohio/University) and
Andrew Walsh (Canonsburg, Pa./Pittsburgh Central Catholic) came off the bench and played key minutes on the defense.
Marietta plays at Bridgewater College on Sunday (Sept. 8) at 3:00 p.m.
Fans can follow all the Pioneer teams all year long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on X and Instagram.
