LEXINGTON, Va. – The 11th ranked and second-seeded Washington and Lee men's soccer team defeated seventh-seeded Virginia Wesleyan, 2-0, in the ODAC Quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon.
The win moves the Generals to 13-2-3 overall on the season, while the Marlins' season ends at 7-11 overall. W&L advances to the ODAC semifinals for the eighth straight season with the win.
The Generals took an early 1-0 lead in the game when sophomore defender
Jack Rawlins (Springfield, Va./Lake Braddock Secondary) booted home his second score of the year in the 11th minute following a corner kick.
The score held at 1-0 for a majority of the remainder of the game as both teams battled hard for offensive opportunities. However, in the 86th minute, W&L capitalized when junior forward
Harry Pinkerton (Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett) found first-year midfielder
John Peterson (Towson, Md./Loyola Blakefield) on a run inside the box. Peterson finished the chance from close range to secure the win for the Blue and White.
Peterson's late goal went down as his team-leading seventh of the season, as he finished the game with four shots and put two attempts on goal. Rawlins shot twice and put both shots on frame, while junior midfielder
Harris Salom (Blacksburg, Va./Blacksburg) and first-year midfielder
Samuel Bass (Charlotte, N.C./Myers Park) combined for nine shots.
For the Marlins, first-year forward Michael Nocera, senior midfielder Shaun Brooks and sophomore forward Scott Harrelson each shot once.
W&L sophomore goalkeeper
Michael Nyc (Kildeer, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson) (13-2-3) was not required to make a save in the 90 minutes of game time. He extended his program record for single season shutouts to 10 with the clean sheet. Sophomore goalkeeper Griffin Potter (7-11) stopped six shots in 90 minutes for the Marlins.
The Generals held a 25-3 margin in shots for the game, including a 15-2 edge in the second half, as the defense did not allow a single shot on goal. W&L also earned four corner kicks and did not concede any.
W&L will be back in action when they take on Roanoke in the ODAC Semifinals on Friday at 6:30 pm at Hampden-Sydney College.
