Altneu nets a pair of goals in the win

NORTON, Mass. – Behind two goals from senior back Ben Altneu (Orleans, Mass./Nauset Regional), the Wheaton College men's soccer team, ranked No. 18 overall in the latest D3soccer.com national poll, defeated Emerson College, 5-2, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday afternoon at Keefe Field.

The Lyons posted a 2-0 differential on the scoreboard after the first 45 minutes of action and never looked back en-route to their third-straight victory and fourth overall in its last five contests. Senior captain Luke Finkelstein (Peabody, Mass./Peabody) netted his fourth goal of the season in the first half, while Altneu potted one marker in each stanza. Wheaton also took advantage of an own goal at the 62:55 mark and junior midfielder/forward Stephan Nkom (Douala, Cameroon/Indian Springs School) capped the scoring for the Blue and White at 82:35 with his second tally of the season.

Emerson received goals from junior forward Adam Halliday (Malvern, Pa./Great Valley) and junior back Ryan Carino (Stoneham, Mass./Stoneham) at 66:19 and 87:00, respectively.

Wheaton junior goalkeeper Matt Dickey (Newton, Mass./Northfield Mount Hermon School) registered two saves in 62 minutes and seven seconds of action in goal to bump his record to 8-0-0 on the season. Backup goalkeeper Jackson Towle (South Berwick, Maine/Marshwood) also made two stops in a reserve role for the hosts. Emerson junior goalkeeper Carter Bowers (Gorham, Maine/Gorham) compiled a game-high ten saves in the loss (3-6-3).

The Lyons outshot the visitors 26-15, which included a 15-7 disparity in the first half, and double up Emerson in the corners matchup by a 12-6 margin.

Finkelstein opened the scoring in the 23rd minute when he gathered a loose ball outside of the box and fired a shot past Bowers for a 1-0 lead. Altneu increased Wheaton's advantage to 2-0 at the 34:46 mark on a feed via senior midfielder/back Brian Kenny (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Iona Prep) for his fifth goal of the season.

Altneu found the back of the net again in the 49th minute as senior midfielder Matheus Goncalves (Framingham, Mass./Worcester Academy) found classmate Travis Blair (Hastings, N.Y./Hastings) in the box with a slick pass before Blair fed Altneu for the easy score.

After an own goal for Wheaton pushed the gap to 4-0, Halliday broke up the shutout in the 67th minute after gathering the ball in a scrum and firing a shot past Towle for his second goal of the year.

Nkom answered for Wheaton at the 82:35 mark with a goal off Kevin Gil's (Pawtucket, R.I./Wheeler School) initial shot that Bowers saved, his ninth out of ten on the day.

Carino scored in similar fashion at the 87:00 mark when he put home Samson Brody's (Portland, Ore./Franklin) rebound for his second goal of the 2014 campaign.

Wheaton (13-2-1, 5-0-0 NEWMAC) travels to Husson University tomorrow for a non-conference matchup at 1 p.m. Emerson (4-7-3, 0-5-0 NEWMAC) visits Fisher College on Tuesday, October 21 for a non-league contest at 6 p.m.

For the latest on Wheaton College Athletics, follow the Lyons via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.