BETHANY, W.Va. -- The Allegheny College men's soccer team secured a top-two seed in the upcoming Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Championship Tournament with a 4-0 win in Wednesday's regular-season finale at Bethany College.
The midweek victory bumped Allegheny (11-6-1, 8-2-1 PAC) up to 25 points in the PAC standings. The Gators are tied for first with Grove City College, but the Wolverines have one game remaining Wednesday night against No. 3 Geneva College. Should the Golden Tornadoes upset the Wolverines, then Allegheny would earn the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the PAC tournament.
The Blue & Gold fired a season-high 40 shots against the Bison (1-15-0, 0-11-0 PAC) and held a whopping 15-to-1 advantage in corner kicks. Allegheny led by one at halftime, but the constant offensive pressure paid off with three more markers in the second half. Senior
Cole Bowser (Forest Hill, Md./John Carroll) scored two of those second-half goals in the 59th and 87th minutes, putting the game well out of Bethany's reach.
Inside the Box Score
- Allegheny finished with 40 shots and 18 shots on goal.
- Bethany only attempted seven total shots.
- The Gators earned 15 corner kicks, while the Bison were held to one.
- Bowser scored a game-high two goals, both coming in the second half.
- Midfielder Will Gruca (Baden, Pa./Ambridge) found the back of the net in the 29th minute.
- Billy Sprott (Moon Township, Pa./Moon Area), a 6-foot-4 back, headed in the team's second goal on a corner in the 47th minute.
- Junior midfielder Arthur Every (Cranleigh, United Kingdom/Glebelands Secondary) dished out a team-high two assists.
- Third-year goalie Cadan Bennett (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) needed only three saves to log a clean sheet.
News and Notes
- Allegheny won its eighth consecutive game and extended its unbeaten streak to 10 in a row.
- The eight-game win streak is the longest in program history since Allegheny won 10 straight in 1994.
- Depending on the result of tonight's 7 p.m. contest between Grove City and Geneva, the Gators will earn either the first or second seed in the PAC Championship Tournament.
- In either scenario, the Gators will receive a first-round bye and a home semifinal game on Wednesday, Nov. 4.
- Wednesday's shutout was Allegheny's fifth of the season.
- With his first career multi-goal performance, Bowser tied his single-season career-high of six goals.
- Gruca became the fourth player in team history to reach 80 career points and heads into the postseason with 81 (29g-23a).
Up Next
The Gators will wait to see who they host in the semifinal round of the PAC Championship Tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Robertson Athletic Complex.
