NEWBURGH, NY (September 4, 2016) — The Vassar College men's soccer team improved to 2-0 on the season with a 2-0 win at Mount Saint Mary College on Sunday.
Toby Stansell scored the game-winner in the 20th minute, thanks to a pass from Mattie Mrlik, before assisting on Jose Novas' goal in the 84th minute.
"The front players did a lot of work, a lot of running," head coach Andy Jennings said. "We didn't have a ton to do from a defensive perspective, but Hayden (Van Brewer) always runs that middle so well and did a good job. But there's a lot of work from our front players, they did a lot of running and defending from the front. I think it was a good overall performance."
Vassar controlled possession throughout the match, rattling off 14 shots to MSMC's three shots. Goalkeeper Matt Marcelino earned the win with two saves, while Tyler Biscone took the loss for the Knights (1-1-0) with three stops on the other end.
"We had a lot of possession in the first half," Jennings said. "We played well wide, but we didn't play through the middle very well. Second half, I thought we did a better job at that. We tried to create those opportunities. We did have a bunch of those chances — we hit the post obviously, we had two or three one-on-ones with the keeper, could've been a little bit more, but they're a tough team. No game is going to be easy. The guys played well. It was a solid performance."
Stansell demonstrated composure throughout the match, totaling four shots in all. The sophomore nearly found the back of the net early in the first half, but his shot hit off the top of the crossbar instead. Mrlik found Stansell a few moments later for a goal that was tucked into the bottom right corner from about 18 yards out.
The Brewers earned some breathing room in the 84th minute when Stansell found Novas for another goal, 2-0. Novas beat the goalkeeper in an one-on-one battle before striking the ball into the far left corner.
"We have a quick turnaround because we play Manhattanville in two days, so we only have one day to rest and recover," Jennings said. "It's going to be a big recovery day, but there's going to be a lot of talking, we'll get everything sorted out with the transition and all."
Vassar's home opener is set for Tuesday, September 6. The Brewers host the Valients of Manhattanville College at Gordon Field, with kickoff set for 4 p.m.
—VASSAR—
