PITTSBURGH, Pa. - After holding #3 Messiah scoreless for over 65 minutes, the Gators saw the Falcons score five times over the final 24 minutes of regulation to post a 5-0 victory in the opening game of the Doubletree Classic, hosted by Carnegie Mellon University.
With the loss, the Gators fall to 0-2 on the young season. The contest was the season-opener for Messiah, which advanced to the Elite Eight of the 2014 NCAA Division III playoffs, after winning the 2013 national title.
The two squads battled back-and-forth throughout a defensively-themed first half, with much of the action taking place in the middle third of the field. The Falcons had a slight edge in possession over the opening 45 minutes, as evidenced by their six corner kicks, but they held just a 4-3 advantage in shots for the half. Both keepers, Allegheny senior
Jake Pugliese and Messiah's Jonathan Weaver, were forced to make just one save apiece.
The teams continued to play evenly over the first 10 minutes of the second half, with each squad posting just one shot apiece over the span, before Messiah put Allegheny on the defensive.
In the 57th minute, Pugliese made his fourth save of the afternoon, but the Gators were unable to gain possession on the clearing attempt. Two minutes later, a foul in front of the cage set up a Messiah penalty kick, but Pugliese made a diving save to keep the game scoreless. It marked the first save on a penalty for a Gator since Nov. 2, 2011, when John Lichina '13 turned one aside against Ohio Wesleyan in the North Coast Athletic Conference semifinals.
Following the missed penalty, Messiah continued to press, with Pugliese turning in a pair of saves in the 63rd minute. The Gators were again unable to gain clear possession, committing a foul just outside of the 18-yard box to set up a free kick for the Falcons, off of which Nick West would score their first goal of the game with 24 minutes left to play.
The Falcons would cash in on the momentum from West's goal, taking a 2-0 lead just five minutes later on a one-timer in front by Robby Johnson. The Gators attempted to counter, twice advancing into Messiah territory, but were unable to put together a quality scoring attempt. Messiah would then score three more times over the final six minutes to put the game away.
Messiah ended the day with a 17-4 advantage in shots, including a 13-2 advantage in the second half. Gator sophomore
Tolossa Hassan led the team with three shots on the day, while Pugliese ended with seven saves, including six in the second half.
The Gators will now look for their first win of the season on Saturday, as they play LaRoche College in the finale of the Carnegie Mellon tournament beginning at 4 p.m.
