Sept. 23, 2009

Final Stats

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- The La Salle men's soccer team scored three goals in a 22-minute span surrounding halftime and defeated Navy, 4-0, on a warm Wednesday night at McCarthy Field. The loss was Navy's second in a row by shutout and drops the Midshipmen's record to 4-3-0 overall. La Salle improved to 3-3-1.

Navy wrapped up its season-long five-game stretch away from home with a 3-2-0 mark.

"I thought we had trouble with the turf surface and their counter attack. They scored on one set play and three transition goals," said Navy head coach Dave Brandt. "We did some things early on that we wanted to do, but were a bit unlucky in not scoring. It just kind of got away from us tonight. We'll regroup on Thursday and Friday and get back after it on Saturday."

Austin Johnson scored La Salle's first two goals in the 36th and 49th minutes, his first two goals of the season. It marked the third in seven games that Navy has allowed a player to score two goals in a game.

Glenroy Chapman then put the nail in the coffin in the 58th minute and Ryan Richter tallied a meaningless goal in the 89th minute for the 4-0 final margin.

Navy is playing without two defensive starters in the backfield as seniors Matt Tapajcik and Matt Biesecker missed the game with injuries. Tapajcik is out for the season after sustaining a knee injury against Temple. Biesecker is questionnable for Saturday's contest with Army.

"The two injuries in the back four doesn't help us and that may have been part of it. We would get out of position after a decent offensive chance and La Salle took advantage of its counter attack," saod Brandt.

The two teams played a fairly even first 30 minutes of the contest. Both teams had four shots on goal in the first 30 minutes. Freshman Michael Rakoczy (Cincinnati, Ohio) had Navy's best chance early on, forcing Kyle Quigley to make a diving save to his right in the 25th minute, resulting in a Navy corner kick.

Also, in the second half, senior Mark Garcia (Tempe, Ariz.) had a great opportunity midway through the frame, but his shot hit the post and the Explorers' defense cleared the ball away.

Navy was outshot 13-7, while both teams had three corner kicks. Navy was whistled for three fouls, while La Salle had nine. Tyler Bristol (Clinton, Conn.) was credited with five saves, while Rakoczy led the Mids with three shots, all on goal.

Navy looks to get back on track on Saturday night, opening Patriot League play by hosting rival Army at 8:00 pm at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Fans that bring their football ticket stub from that day's game with Western Kentucky can purchase a soccer ticket for just $2. Tickets are available the night of the game or by calling 1-800-US4-NAVY.

In addition, the Navy shuttle bus that runs to GWSF that typically runs from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium will now run from the Naval Exchange at the Naval Station in Annapolis. Riding the shuttle bus on Saturday night is free of charge and will drop fans off at the GWSF entrance.

# GO NAVY #