COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – After facing an early deficit, the Ursinus College men's soccer team rallied behind three unanswered goals to earn a 3-1 decision over Eastern University on Tuesday evening from Patterson Field.
With the victory, Ursinus improves to 5-0-1 on the season and currently sits one game shy of their best starts in program history, while the Eagles fall to 2-3-1 overall to open their season. Junior
Julian Faust, sophomore
Simon Muther, and first-year
Jason Lotkowski each recorded goals for the Bears. Ursinus extended their home winning streak to four games and currently have a 10-3-1 record at Patterson Field since the start of last season.
Eastern quickly connected on a scoring opportunity during the second minute as Sam Provido assisted Evan Cope on a goal to give the Eagles an early 1-0 lead. After being awarded a free kick near midfield, the Eagles capitalized off a loose ball when Provido played a through ball to Cope who connected on a one-on-one opportunity with the Bears' netminder. Ursinus quickly responded in the ninth minute as Faust connected on a scoring attempt for his fourth goal of the season. Senior
Joshua Coster started the counterattack as he played a pass down the far sideline to junior forward
Enver Desic. After sneaking past his defender, Desic found Faust about 15-yards away with three Eagles surrounding him. Faust showcased some fancy footwork to create space and sent a shot towards the far post to tie the contest at one apiece. The Bears defense continued to limit the offensive opportunities for the Eagles, before capitalizing on a score by Muther to stretch the Ursinus lead to 2-1.
At the 24:02-mark, sophomore
Declan Curran recovered a deflected shot and found Muther just outside the top of the box. Muther made one touch before sending an arching shot towards the left post for the goal. Ursinus added their final tally during the 42nd minute as Lotkowski tallied his second goal of the season to increase the Bears lead to two. Lotkowski chased down a loose ball heading towards the Eagles goalie and forced a defensive miscue allowing the first-year forward to tap in a empty netter.
After the halftime break, the Eagles recorded the opening two shots on goal but stellar defensive play from the Bears defense and senior netminder
Zach Matik kept the Bears lead at 3-1. Each team traded scoring opportunities over the remainder of the contest, but it was the Bears defense forcing the second half shutout in route to the 3-1 decision.
The Eagles held a 19-16 advantage in shots, but the Bears earned more quality chances as they held a 10-6 edge in shots on goal. Matik earned his fifth victory of the season in goal behind corralling four saves, while Eastern's Ty Bleiler suffered the loss recording seven saves over 90 minutes of action.
The Bears return to action on Saturday, September 21st as they host McDaniel College for their 2024 Centennial Conference opener at 11 am.
