LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- Maksym Komperda (Whitehall, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) gave the West Chester University men's soccer team (10-3-3, 7-2-2) an early 1-0 lead in the first half, and the Golden Rams never faltered en route to a crucial 2-0 victory over Lock Haven (6-8-3, 3-6-2) on Sunday afternoon.
History was also made for West Chester in the victory as senior goalkeeper
Daniel Good (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) also set a new win record for the Golden Rams, notching his 41
st career victory in goal, passing the record of 40 wins, previously held by Andrew Shafer, who starred for the Golden Rams from 2001-04. This gives Good the program for shutouts and victories heading into the Golden Rams' final regular season matchup against East Stroudsburg on Friday afternoon, beginning at 1 p.m.
Today's victory also places the Golden Rams in an excellent position to clinch one of the top two spots in the Eastern Division in the final week of the season, moving one point back of Bloomsburg, whom West Chester holds a tiebreak over, and getting back to within three points of Millersville, whom the Golden Rams split the series with earlier this year.
West Chester got out to an early lead when Komperda scored in the 12
th minute off an assist by
Dillon Barbieri (Souderton, Pa./Souderton).
West Chester went to the half holding a narrow 1-0 lead while holding a 5-2 advantage in shots and a 2-1 lead in shots on goal through the first 45 minutes.
In the 75th minute, West Chester doubled its lead when
Cooper Jackson (Sinking Spring, Pa./Wilson) converted a perfect pass from
Owen Slack (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley), making the score 2-0 in favor of the visiting Golden Rams.
Down the stretch, West Chester limited Lock Haven, but the Bald Eagles did try to mount a late comeback with under three minutes to play, hitting the crossbar on back-to-back shots before sending another chance high over the crossbar as the Golden Rams held on for the 2-0 victory.
West Chester ended the game with a 5-2 lead in shots on goal and a 10-7 lead in corners, while the hosts ended the game with a 15-13 lead in shots.
Good picked up his 41
st career victory in style on Sunday evening, making a pair of saves to record his fourth shutout of the month and eighth of the season.
Good's counterpart, Lock Haven keeper Brady Freiwald, also played well on Sunday, making three important stops to keep his team in the match throughout the afternoon.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Friday afternoon against East Stroudsburg at 1 p.m. in a game with significant playoff-seeding implications for the Golden Rams. With a victory or draw on Friday, West Chester will guarantee itself at least a two-seed in the PSAC Tournament when it begins on Monday, November 6. Should West Chester pick up an all-important victory over ESU on Friday afternoon, the Golden Rams would place substantial pressure on Millersville, who takes the field against Shepherd on Friday afternoon beginning at 4 p.m. in what may become a must-win for the Marauders.
