The Elizabethtown College men’s soccer team headed on the road this past week to face off against the Susquehanna River Hawks. This highly contested Landmark Conference matchup consisted of two teams with opposite starts to the season.
The Blue Jays came into the contest 5-3-2 with a strong start to their season in non-conference play. The River Hawks sported a record of 2-6-1, falling in their first Landmark Conference matchup of the season against Scranton 4-1.
The teams kicked off at Sassafras Field in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania and Etown tried to find themselves at an early advantage after the kickoff. With a pass up the field, Etown had a prime opportunity to take an early lead, however, the play was blown dead after an offside call by the officials. The Blue Jays made a couple of more attempts at finding an opening through the River Hawks defense, however, two more offside calls in the first 10 minutes kept the Etown offense at bay.
Junior forward Caba Alvarez gave the Blue Jays their first opportunity of the half, recording the first shot of the game in the 12th minute, however, it had gone wide, squandering the chance.
Etown had another chance in the 20th minute, with sophomore defender Connor Kirchner’s shot going high of the goal. Despite the missed opportunities, the Blue Jays continued to pile on the pressure onto the back line of the River Hawks.
First-year forward Chase Ballinger had an opportunity before the close of the first half, however, the shot sailed wide. Susquehanna couldn’t find the back of the net after a corner kick and the halftime whistle blew shortly after the shot opportunities by both sides, bringing the game into the break tied at 0-0.
Etown had another opportunity after the kickoff in the second half, however identically to the first, the chance was blown dead after another offside call. Similarly to the first half, Etown and Susquehanna both fell victim to another offside call on both ends, stopping momentum in its tracks for both sides.
Junior midfielder Owen Auchenbach had the first chance of the half for Etown, with his shot going wide of the net as the game remained level.
The Blue Jays continued to pile on the pressure, with a shot by Ballinger saved by a block by a defender and a shot by sophomore forward Evan Berlinski missing the target. Sophomore midfielder Quinn Erb added another shot that missed the target, however, Etown kept finding attacking chances in the opposing half.
Auchenbach made a risky challenge at around midfield for the Blue Jays late in the second half, picking up a yellow card and giving Susquehanna a free kick.
Junior midfielder Manny Valazquez had the final opportunity for the Blue Jays, with his shot missing the goal, ending the flurry of Blue Jay attacks in the second half. The River Hawk defense held on, ending the match in a tie of 0-0.
Etown led the game in shot attempts with eight compared to Susquehanna’s three. Etown’s defense did a spectacular job, allowing zero shots on target and keeping sophomore goalkeeper Logan Sumner’s job easy that afternoon.
The Blue Jays move to 5-3-3 for the season and will come back home to the new and improved Ira R. Herr turf field to take on Catholic on Oct 14.
