NORTON, Mass. — Junior midfielder Max Strong (Littleton, Mass.) netted the lone goal of the match to give the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's soccer team a 1-0 victory over visiting Clark University (Mass.) this afternoon in the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference opener at Keefe Field on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons earn their first win of the season to improve to 1-1-3 overall and 1-0 in league play, while the Cougars fall to 1-3-2 and 0-1.
Wheaton dominated possession during the match with a 28-3 shot advantage, but just couldn't break through with a goal until late in the second half. The home team also owned a 9-2 advantage on corner kicks.
The Lyons scored with 16:43 left in the second half to take a 1-0 lead. The Clark keeper looked to clear the ball out with a boot near midfield, but senior Robert Lloyd (Lexington, Mass.) stepped up to put his head on the ball to send it through the air and into the 18-yard box for Wheaton. Senior forward Alberto Franceschi (Caracas, Venezuela) collected the ball and had the keeper one-on-one. He tried to flick a shot into the far right corner, but the Cougar keeper was able to slap it away with his hand, only to be picked up by Strong on the rebound for a one-time shot into the back of the net for his first marker of the season in the 74th minute of play.
Clark's only shot on frame came with 6:24 to play when first year forward Kofi Poku (Dover, Mass.) directed a harmless shot inside the goalmouth that was stopped by the Lyon keeper.
Strong made the most of his time on the field with a team-high four shots, including three on net for Wheaton.
Sophomore goalie Michael O'Gara (Ardmore, Pa.) turned away the only shot he faced to record his third career shutout, while senior keeper Andrew DiStefano (West Chester, Pa.) made a career-high 12 stops for the Cougars,
The Lyons return to action on Wednesday, September 20 when they head to Waltham, Mass. to take on Brandeis University at 7:00 p.m., while Clark hosts University of New England on the same night at the same time.
