WESTMINSTER, Md. - The Haverford College men's soccer team (7-6-1, 4-2-0 CC) shut out McDaniel (4-7-1, 1-5-0) on Saturday afternoon at Green Terror Soccer Complex. A goal in the first half saw Haverford extend its winning streak to five games as the team battled in the rain to come out on top 1-0.
Traveling down to Maryland, the Fords were met with wet and windy conditions that didn't necessarily slow down either team. It was evident that each group didn't mind the rain and had a game plan to stick to despite the conditions making things tougher. Brian Lorenz looked to get things going early with a chance in the opening ten minutes that sailed just over the crossbar. McDaniel began settling into the game as they looked to pressure the backline into dangerous situations, but Haverford's unit remained organized.
The rain settled down 15 minutes into the game, and Haverford began to move the ball a little quicker. The left side was a point of emphasis for the Fords, as most of the damage was done on that side of the field. In the 20th minute, Noah Schwab got a hold of the ball and fired in a cross to Alex Millones, as Millones saw his header saved by the McDaniel goalkeeper.
Once again, the Fords were threatening on the left side of the field in the 30th minute. Michael Lyons settled the ball beautifully on the sideline, feeding a pass to Andrew Stephens. The latter immediately turned and found Brian Lorenz flying down the line. Lorenz attempted a cross that was cleared, but the ball fell to Lyons, who found the head of Noah Schwab. He settled the ball for Paul-Andre Coulibaly, who took a fake touch and then cut the ball to his left foot. He was then left with a perfect angle to beat the McDaniel keeper at his far post for 1-0.
It was Coulibaly's team-leading fifth goal of the season, his second in the last two games. Schwab registered his first assist of the season with the perfectly placed pass.
The Fords were 3-0 when leading at the half coming into the game, and they had no plans on ending the streak there. Haverford controlled the pace, playing tight and compact soccer, forcing McDaniel to change their game plan at halftime. In the second half, Haverford was keen on holding possession and seeing out the result. McDaniel looked to create a few chances, with their best shot in the 54th minute, but it went wide.
Dylan Ioffreda didn't have to do much in the contest and was able to earn his fourth clean sheet of the year behind solid performances from the Haverford backline. In the end, the Fords were able to see out a 1-0 win and improve their conference record to 4-2, placing them third in the Centennial with results still pending from throughout the conference landscape.
Men's soccer is 7-2-1 in their last ten games and will play their next contest Wednesday, October 20 at home against fourth-placed Franklin & Marshall. The game is slated for 4 p.m.