COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus men's soccer team scored early against King's and that is all they would need as they defeated the Monarchs 1-0 on Wednesday night at Patterson Field in non-conference action.
With the win, the Bears bounced back and improved to 5-1 overall. Meanwhile, the Monarchs of the MAC Freedom fell to 1-4
The Bears put the pressure on the Monarchs early and often in the first half as they got two shots on the net in the first five minutes of the game. Junior Luke Leuhrs then got past two defenders in the seventh minute but sent a shot just wide left of the net. Ursinus cashed in during the 16th minute when first-year
Declan Curran rocketed a ball for goal from the center from a headed clear attempt in front of the net.
Sophomore
Colin Deal had his shot attempt go off the Monarch goalkeeper's fingertips which went to a defender that headed the ball right to Curran from 10 yards out. The Bears continued to dominate possession time in the first half and took their one goal advantage into halftime behind a dominant 13-3 shot advantage. Senior
Tommy Mollis had a shot from the left side deflected away by the Monarchs goalkeeper in the 39th minute in a decent chance for Ursinus.
First-year
Simon Muther had a pair of shots in the first three minutes of the second half just go wide of the net that nearly extended the Bears lead. King's led a rush after a short corner kick and got the ball in the center in the box, but a shot was sent left of the net in the 51st minute. Muther then had a turnaround shot in the box saved in the 75th minute after various action in the midfield. The Monarchs had one last shot to tie the game with 1:45 left in regulation when a cross from the right that went to the front of the net was sent just wide right of the net.
Ursinus held a sizable 19-6 advantage in total shots behind their dominant first half total and a 7-2 edge in shots on goal. The Bears also held a sizable advantage in corner kick opportunities at 9-2. Junior Bears goalkeeper
Zach Matik earned the shutout win after making two saves in the full 90 minutes of action. It was his first shutout since his freshman season at Muhlenberg in 2021. Meanwhile, Monarchs goalkeeper Eric Siciliano suffered the loss after making six saves during the full 90 minutes.
The Bears return to action on Saturday, September 23rd as they will host Johns Hopkins in Centennial Conference action at 3:00 p.m. for their alumni day celebration.
