WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Senior midfielder Baden McLaughlin (Yarmouth, Maine) netted the lone goal for the visiting Wheaton College (Mass.) men's soccer team in a 1-1 draw against host No. 10 Williams College this afternoon on Cole Field in Williamstown, Mass.
The Lyons are now 1-0-1 on the season, while the Ephs, who are ranked 10th in the United Soccer Coaches pre-season national poll, are 0-0-1 following their season opener.
Williams held an 18-14 shooting margin, despite Wheaton owning an 8-7 edge in shots on frame. The Ephs held an 8-3 advantage in corner kicks.
The Lyons knotted the game in the 67th minute of play to make it 1-1. Senior back Kevin Morse (Acton, Mass.) started the offensive push with a throw-in from the right side that fellow back Owen Kane (Pembroke, Mass.) redirected with a header in the right slot to sophomore midfielder Charlie Cushing (Eastham, Mass.). Cushing's bid for a header goal was thwarted by the cross bar, but McLaughlin was able to collect the rebound on the back post and tap it in for the game-tying score with 23:08 left in the match. The assist for Cushing was his first collegiate point.
Williams got on the board early, scoring in the fifth minute of action to take a 1-0 edge. Sophomore midfielder Ben Brown (Scarsdale, N.Y.) fired a shot on net, but Wheaton senior keeper Michael O'Gara (Ardmore, Pa.) was there for the stop. The ball came off his hands, where junior midfielder Kellan Grace (Weston, Conn.) was able to slot the loose ball to first year forward JJ Ruehlemann (Waldwick, N.J.), who uncorked a shot on an angle from 12 yards out on the left side for his first collegiate tally just 4:19 into the match.
O'Gara and the Lyon defense were outstanding the rest of the way, holding the Ephs without a goal for the final 85:41 of play. O'Gara finished the afternoon with six saves.
Williams sophomore goalie Kai Darrell (Manhattan, N.Y.) was untested in the first half of play, before yielding to first year netminder Aleix Anglada (Dubai, United Arab Emirates), who turned away seven of eight shots in the final 45 minutes of play.
Ruehlemann attempted a game-high four shots for the Ephs, while sophomore forward Gael Vera (Westminster, Mass.) fired three times for Wheaton.
The Lyons return to action on Saturday, September 6 when they open the home slate with a 2:00 p.m. kickoff against University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) on Keefe Field, while Williams heads to Medford, Mass. to open the New England Small College Athletic Conference schedule at Tufts University on the same day at 3:00 p.m.
