The #6 Middlebury men's soccer team found the back of the net in the 25th minute and held off a second-half charge by Amherst to seal a 1-0 victory on Saturday afternoon from the Bay State.
HIGHLIGHTS
- The hosts had their first chance in the sixth minute. Luka Ohadike rose and flicked a header from the left side of the goal box that was pushed over the crossbar.
- Will Sawin put the Panthers ahead with his second free-kick opportunity with 24:43 expired, bending his shot past a wall of Mammoth defenders and a diving Trey Sheppard into the right side of the net.
- Middlebury nearly doubled its lead about six minutes later. Harper Nicholl created a breakaway opportunity and fired a chance that bounced off Sheppard's chest. Keagan Harder trailed the play and ripped a sizzling bid off the woodwork.
- The forward tested Sheppard again with 37:44 elapsed, collecting a flip pass from Hugo Horwitz just inside the 18-yard box before striking a bid toward the center of the goal. Sheppard poked the ball in the air with his right glove and caught it with both hands on the left post to deny any rebound opportunity.
- Amherst turned up the heat with 11 ticks remaining in the first half. Mohammed Nuhu laced a free kick that looked destined for the upper-right portion. Panther goalie Leon Brody dove at the right time and knocked the ball over the endline for a corner kick that the purple and white did not get off before the horn sounded.
- Timothy Chow looked to get the Mammoths on the board just 4:57 into the second half, but his rising shot from distance sailed over the top of the framework.
- Ohadike split two Panther defenders and fired a bid in the 60th minute that pushed wide left.
- Amherst put a shot on target less than 10 minutes later. Obed Opoku settled in the right side of the box and flicked a bouncer that Brody smothered.
- Antonio Cosentino pushed the envelope with 76:51 elapsed via a right-footed shot that skidded on the grass. Sheppard took a step back and corralled the ball on the bounce to deny the scoring opportunity.
- On the corresponding runout, Nuhu stopped the ball on the right side of the box and tried to best Brody with a flick shot destined toward the right side of the net. The goalie stood his ground and pounced on the bounding ball.
- Amherst tried to muster one final attempt with a shot by Finn Hoefer at the 86:47 mark, but the ball sailed wide left as the Panthers secured the 1-0 victory.
NOTES
- Sawin extends his goal streak to four consecutive contests. The tally is his 20th in a Panther uniform.
- Brody stopped all three Amherst shots on target to grab his fifth shutout in the navy and white.
- The win snaps the Mammoths' nine-game unbeaten streak over Middlebury and marks the 27th triumph in series history.
The Panthers continue their four-game NESCAC swing by hosting Hamilton on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. at South Street Field.
