MILLERSVILLE, Pa.- Jason Goldfeder (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cedar Cliff) scored the eventual game-winner midway through the first half to help lead the West Chester University men's soccer team (6-2-1, 3-1) to a convincing 3-0 victory over previously unbeaten Millersville (5-1-2, 2-1-1) on the road on Wednesday night.
In addition to Goldfeder's early goal,
Jack Dieffenderfer (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) scored a pair of goals midway through the second half to help lead the Golden Rams to the dominant victory.
Christian Vorchheimer (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) also had a big day against his former team on Wednesday night, assisting the game-winner and Dieffenderfer's second goal to help lead West Chester offensively.
Daniel Good (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) was outstanding in goal, making five saves to quiet the Marauder offense.
West Chester started quickly, recording the first shot on goal of the game just under three minutes in when
Owen Slack (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) got a good look on goal, but Travis Holiday made the stop for the Marauders to keep things scoreless early. Millersville appeared as if it might counter quickly, getting a look of its own just over 30 seconds later, but the chance went harmlessly high to keep things scoreless early.
Over the next 20 minutes, the two sides settled in defensively, keeping things relatively quiet from an offensive-chance standpoint as the first half crossed its midway point, still tied at 0-0. The score did not remain tied for long as
Jason Goldfeder (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cedar Cliff) found the back of the net in the 26
th minute off an assist from former Marauder
Christian Vorchheimer (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon), giving the visiting Golden Rams the 1-0 advantage.
Trailing by a goal for the first time since its home-opener draw against Holy Family back on September 6, Millersville pressed hard for an equalizer before the halftime break, getting two more shots off against
Daniel Good (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) and the West Chester defense, but the Golden Rams were up to the task, saving both chances to hold a 1-0 lead heading into the halftime break.
Out of the halftime break, West Chester was not finished offensively.
Jack Dieffenderfer (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) added two more goals in the 72
nd and 75
th minute, giving the Golden Rams a commanding 3-0 lead. Vorchheimer also continued his impressive homecoming in the second half, picking up his second assist of the night on Dieffenderfer's second goal, helping to facilitate the Golden Ram offense throughout the evening.
Finding itself trailing by multiple goals for the first time all season, Millersville got a corner kick just over 30 seconds after the goal, but the chance went by the wayside as West Chester successfully cleared the ball out of danger.
In the 80
th minute, Millersville had another shot on goal off the foot of Michael Dempsey, but the chance was handled by Good once again, making his fifth save of the night to keep the Marauders off the scoreboard. This proved to be the last strong scoring chance of the night for the hosts, as neither side logged a shot in the final 10 minutes of regulation.
West Chester ended the game with an 11-9 lead in shots overall, while the two sides tied in shots on goal (5-5) and corners (3-3).
For Millersville, Holiday was credited with a pair of saves as the Golden Rams snapped his nearly 300-minute shutout streak in the victory.
West Chester's three goals on Wednesday night marked the most goals an opponent has scored against Millersville so far this year, surpassing the previous high of two, set by Holy Family and Ashland in the first two games of the season. Tonight's victory also marks the Golden Rams' largest margin of victory over the Marauders since August of the 2007 season when the Golden Rams defeated their foes by a 4-1 final.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Saturday afternoon on Rockwell Field at 12 p.m. against Lock Haven. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and expect potential delays due to traffic as Saturday's game is part of Homecoming and Family Weekend on South Campus, and higher traffic volumes are expected.
