Nicolas Tierno, Dickinson (photo by James Rasp)
Dickinson 4, Westfield State 0
The Dickinson men's soccer team posted a 4-0 win over visiting Westfield State University in the opening round of the NCAA Division III playoffs on Thursday night. The Red Devils advance to the second round and will travel to New England to face Amherst College on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 pm.
Senior Nicolas Tierno (Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek Regional) had a huge night for Dickinson, scoring the first two goals and recording an assist on the third. Tierno collected a loose ball in the Westminster penalty area and found the back of the net to put the Devils on the board in the 19th minute.
Dickinson held a 1-0 lead into halftime, holding a 12-2 advantage in shots while senior goaltender Cody Hickok (Redding, Conn./Joel Barlow) turned away a pair of shots. Westfield's Kris Carrington (Agawan, Mass./Agawam) made five saves in the first half.
Tierno added an insurance goal for Dickinson, just 6:06 into the second half, finishing a well-played cross from first-year Alfred Hylton-Dei (Geneva, Switzerland/Mercersburg Academy) in the 52nd minute. The Red Devils stretched the lead to 3-0 in the 63rd minute as senior Shepherd Waldenberger (Madison, Va./Madison County) slipped behind the defense and finished a double assist from Tierno and junior Derek Kachadurian (Weston, Mass./Weston).
First-year Braeden Kelly (Brookeville, Md./Sandy Springs Friends) closed out the scoring for the night, breaking through in the 84th minute to make the final score, 4-0.
Carrington finished with eight saves on the night as the Devils finished with a 21-6 edge in the shots. The Owls finish the season 9-10-2 overall and capturing the MASCAC title to earn the automatic bid to the tournament.
Hickok made four saves on the night behind a solid effort from the Red Devil defense as they record their ninth shutout of the season. Dickinson improves to 13-4-2 overall. They will travel to Amherst for the 1:00 kick-off in Sunday's Second Round match-up.