Mercier and Fox Senior Day
Tyler Schueck
1
Wilson WILM (6-9-2, 3-3 NEAC)
5
Winner Penn State Berks PSBM (9-8-1, 7-2-1 NEAC)
Wilson WILM
(6-9-2, 3-3 NEAC)
1
Final
5
Penn State Berks PSBM
(9-8-1, 7-2-1 NEAC)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Wilson WILM 0 1 1
Penn State Berks PSBM 2 3 5

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

Men's soccer tops Wilson, secures home playoff game

READING, PA - The Penn State Berks men's soccer team picked up a 5-1 victory over Wilson College in a North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) contest on Saturday afternoon.

Prior to the game, the Nittany Lions (9-8-1, 7-2-1 NEAC) celebrated the careers of seniors Jon Mercier and Wes Fox. Following the game, the team celebrated the fact that their victory, paired with a Lancaster Bible loss, meant that Berks would host a NEAC Quarterfinal round contest for the second straight year.

BRENDEN VALVERDE got the Nittany Lions on the board early with an unassisted goal in the 13th minute. After the Phoenix (6-9-2, 4-6 NEAC) failed to clear the ball out of their defensive end, Valverde collected the ball and drilled a low liner past the keeper inside the left post.

Later in the half, Manny Zavala worked through the defense and delivered a perfect pass to Nathaniel Shenk, who deflected the ball into the far corner to give Berks a 2-0 lead in the 40th minute.

Valverde and Mercier then put on a show in the 57th minute to put the game out of reach. At the 56:12 mark, Mercier worked through the midfield and played the ball ahead to Valverde. The speedy freshman dribbled hard down the middle of the field and beat the keeper into the far corner. The Phoenix immediately turned the ball over on the restart and Mercier quickly took possession and chipped the ball over the defense. Valverde then tracked the ball down and delivered a shot into the near corner to give Berks a 4-0 lead. The back-to-back goals were separated by just 16 seconds of game time.

Shenk capped off the scoring with his second goal of the afternoon at the 63:00 mark of the contest. The Phoenix defense played the ball back to the keeper and Shenk came crashing in to add some pressure. As luck would have it, the keeper's clear hit off of Shenk's face and bounced directly into the net.

Wilson was able to end the shutout when Oliver Perry kneed the ball off of a freed from Shayne Ray at 89:19.

Three goalkeepers saw action in the contest for the Nittany Lions and each recorded one save. Gerardo Sosa earned the win after a scoreless first half, while Trent Johnson and Domingo Esparza split time in the second half.

Berks outshot the Phoenix by a 16-12 margin, including 10-4 on goal, while Wilson had a 6-5 advantage on corner kicks.

The Nittany Lions will host Lancaster Bible in the NEAC Quarterfinal round on Tuesday, October 31 at 2 p.m.


 
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