Brookhaven, N.Y. – Top-seeded and
second-ranked LIU Post men's soccer team advanced to Sunday's East
Coast Conference final by virtue of a 7-1 victory over
fourth-seeded Mercy College in semifinal action on Friday
afternoon.
The Pioneers, with a record of 17-1-0, tie the program record from
wins in a season, set just last year. Mercy ends its season
at 10-5-3.
After 20 minutes of scoreless play to open the game, the scoring
action got started with Mercy's William Koki in the 24th minute, as
he controlled the ball at just past the 30, dribbled through the
defense, at lined a hard shot into the upper shelf for a 1-0
lead.
It took the Pioneers only ten minutes to respond with the
equalizer, as a Mercy foul committed ten yards past midfield gave
the home team a free kick. Junior back Eirik Bjoernoe
(Randaberg, Norway) sent a good ball into the box, finding freshman
Alex Billington (Preston, England) who finished with a header at
33:23 to tie it at one apiece.
The Pioneers captured the lead three minutes later as junior
Jonathan Watkin (Doncaster, England) controlled a pass from Andreas
Olson (Oppeid, Norway) and positioned a 15-yard shot into the left
corner.
Coming out of the halftime break with a 2-1 lead, the Pioneers blew
the game open with three goals in just three minutes, as Watkin
scored his second of the day and junior Cemil Turan (Staten Island,
N.Y.) and freshman Per Forgaard (Stavanger, Norway) both notched a
score.
Freshman Matias Ruiz (Southampton, N.Y.) tacked on a goal with 17
minutes to play as he powered a shot into the top shelf for a 6-1
lead, and sophomore Dusan Gargurevich (Quito, Ecuador) rounded out
the scoring with a tally in the 87th minute.
The Pioneers held a 21-9 shot advantage, generating six corners to
two for Mercy. Junior goalkeeper Marco Jorgensen (Copenhagen,
Denmark) made two saves in 64 minutes of action, while sophomore
Victor Muntean (Westbury, N.Y.) made one save the rest of the
way.
Provided by the LIU Post Sports Information Department.
