GEORGETOWN, Ky. – Men's soccer picked up its first win of the season Saturday afternoon in what was a key MSC matchup against Georgetown. The Bears (1-6, 1-1 MSC) used a second half goal by Luke Purpero to take the lead off an assist from Dylan Stevens. From there, Thomas Carbonari and the rest of the Bears defense held Georgetown (0-6, 0-1 MSC) scoreless despite 11 shots from the Tigers in the second half.
The Bears were not able to crack the Tigers' defense in the opening 45 minutes, but would set an early tone to the game, holding a 9-4 advantage in shots and allowed Georgetown just one shot on goal. Meanwhile, Tigers' goalie Stefan Iverson was forced to make seven stops to keep the Shawnee State offense off the scoreboard.
The Bears offense started strong by taking the first four shots of the game, including three on goal, before Georgetown got anything going offensively. It wasn't until the 27th minute that the Tigers were even able to send a shot wide of frame. However, Shawnee State quickly regrouped and put together three shots on goal from the 31st through 35th minutes.
After not being able to beat the Tigers' defense early on, the Bears stayed persistent and would send another shot wide with just over six minutes to play in the opening half before making Iverson stop one final shot with just under two minutes remaining before halftime. In the first 45 minutes, Nick Dowdell took four of the Bears' shots and put two on target. Five other players, including Purpero who would go on to net the game-winner in the second half, put their first half shots on goal.
In the second half, it was Georgetown that would bring the shot total back in its favor. The Tigers started the offensive barrage with the first four shots in the opening 13 minutes of the second half. Their offensive attack would end with a corner attempt upcoming.
After the Bears successfully defended that kick, they worked the transition game up to Purpero who would finish the goal off a pass from Stevens in transition to put his team up 1-0. For Purpero, the goal was his team-leading third of the season and gave his squad the lead with just over 32 minutes remaining in the match.
Over those final 32 minutes, the Tigers would throw everything they had at the Bears defense. During that time the Tigers took seven shots, while also holding a 4-0 edge in corner kick attempts during the second half. In total, Georgetown outshot Shawnee State 11-3 in the second half.
Despite the constant pressure, the Bears defense did not crack. At the game's conclusion, Carbonari would end up posting his first career shutout at Shawnee State after facing 15 shots on the day, six of which were on goal.
Men's soccer will now have a week to prepare for its third MSC game of the season next Saturday, September 22 at St. Catharine. That match is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start and will be played as a doubleheader with the women's match starting at 2 p.m.
