COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. - The Ursinus men's soccer team used a pair of goals to defeat Franklin and Marshall, 2-1, on Wednesday evening in a conference tilt at Patterson Field.
 
 
The win helped the Bears improve to 4-9-2 overall, and 1-6 in conference play. With the loss, the Diplomats dropped to 3-10-2, and 1-5-1 in conference action.      
 
 
Both teams traded blows in the early minutes, creating a plethora of scoring opportunities but unable to convert. The squads tallied a combined 17 shots in the first half, but neither was able to capitalize, due to strong defensive pressure from both sides. Ursinus was finally able to break through in the 34th minute, after a corner was earned by junior forward Matthew McFadden. McFadden delivered the corner to leaping senior defender AJ Torres, who headed the ball into the right corner of the goal to put Ursinus up 1-0. The goal marked the first of Torres' career, while McFadden's assist increased his point total to seven, which leads the team. Ursinus held strong through the final 10 minutes of the half, as junior goalkeeper Josiah Moore saved a shot in the final minute to take the team to halftime, up 1-0.
 
 
The Diplomats came out of the break on the attack, as a cross from midfielder Nico Polacios sunk into the left corner to tie the game in the 60th minute. Both sides continued to battle, with the Bears fending off multiple Diplomats' shots defensively. Ursinus was able to break through in the 81st minute, as first-year forward Nicholas Grippa was tripped up within the box leading to a penalty kick. Senior midfielder Enver Desic drove the kick into the right side of the goal to give the Bears the 2-1 advantage. Ursinus held strong defensively for the final nine minutes, to seal the win.
 
 
The Diplomats held a tight 15-14 shot advantage, while the Bears led 6-4 in shots on goal. Franklin and Marshall also earned a 5-2 advantage on corners. Moore earned the victory in goal for the Bears tallying three saves, while Diplomats' netminder Davis Rorick took the loss behind three saves as well.
 
 
Ursinus will now travel to Chestertown, Maryland on Saturday for a conference matchup against Washington College at 7 p.m.