Bucknell University
Adelphi
Bucknell Men's Soccer Records Highest Goal Total in 20 Years, Beats Adelphi 7-0 in Home Opener
9/14/2012 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 14, 2012
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Excited to be playing on home turf for the first time this season, the Bucknell men's soccer team thrilled a large crowd by posting its highest goal total in 20 years in a 7-0 victory over Adelphi on Friday night in the first game of the Class of '98 Invitational at Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium. Brendan Burgdorf got things going with a goal just 5:19 into the match, Jonathan Grad gave the Bison some breathing room just before the half, and then they put it away with a five-goal second half.
Bucknell won its third straight contest to improve to 3-1-2 on the season. The team's first five matches all came away from home, and a crowd of 1,025 filled Holmes Stadium on Friday. The fans were treated to a new facility scoring record and the team's highest goal total since an 8-0 win over Susquehanna nearly 20 years ago to the day, Sept. 15, 1992.
The second-half onslaught started just 56 seconds in when Joe Meyer scored his second goal of the year. Later, freshman Patrick Figgie and sophomores Conor Keeley and Mark Leibensperger all scored their first career goals. Keeley tacked on another in the 87th minute to complete the scoring.
"We talked in the pregame about wanting to control the tempo right from the opening kickoff, and that worked out very well with Brendan's early goal," said coach Brendan Nash. "We scored a big goal right before the half, and then at halftime we said we wanted to increase the tempo even more, and we got the third goal in the first minute. That allowed us to use our depth to wear them down a bit, which led to all the late goals. It was a total team effort both offensively and defensively."
Lost in the offensive surge was a second straight shutout for the defense, which limited Adelphi to seven total shots and only one on goal. Backstopping the effort was freshman goalkeeper Clarke Fox, who made his collegiate debut in place of injured starter Mike Lansing.
"I am very happy with our goalkeeping situation," said Nash. "We have four goalkeepers, and if any one of them gets called we would be very confident that they would get the job done. Clarke showed that tonight. He was very solid back there."
Adelphi (1-5) came in feeling good after a win over previously unbeaten Massachusetts, but the Bison ambushed the Panthers with an early goal on the game's first shot. Meyer redirected an Adelphi clearing attempt back toward the goal, and Burgdorf outran a defender to the ball, pulled away once he got inside the 18, and buried a shot into the right side of the net for his first goal of the season.
The Bison had a number of close calls later in the first half, including a point-blank shot from Jesse Klug that was steered aside by Adelphi keeper Ahmad Salamah. Six minutes later, Josh Plump made a terrific run along the left flank, and his cross toward Burgdorf was barely flicked away by a defender at the last minute. In the 23rd minute, Josh Butzke grazed the crossbar with a blast from 35 yards out.
Bucknell was still clinging to that 1-0 lead in the final minutes of the half when pressure from Meyer in the deep corner forced Adelphi's right back to play the ball out of bounds. On the resulting throw-in, Mayowa Alli found Jonathan Grad inside the penalty area, and Grad scored on a running header from about 10 yards away.
Coming out of the locker room with a two-goal lead, the Bison quickly made it 3-0 when freshman defender Connor Willings, who had a terrific game on the right side, laid a ball off for Meyer, who took a touch to his right and sent a low shot past a defender and past a diving goalkeeper into the left side of the net. It was Meyer's second goal of the season and his career.
The reserves began to come on just inside the hour mark, and the freshman Figgie was the first one to cash in. While Figgie netted his first career goal, it was senior CK Kumah who did the work to make it happen. A loose ball was rolling toward the end line, but Kumah outhustled a defender and just before the ball crossed the line he turned and flipped a pass back into the box, where a wide-open Figgie was able to volley it out of the air into the net.
Keeley, a sophomore playing in his second career game, scored his first goal on an open header from eight yards out off a service from Pat Plourde on the right wing in the 77th minute. Leibensperger, also a sophomore in his second career appearance, was next to join the scoring parade when he one-timed Keeley's pass from close range in the 85th minute. That play started on a free kick from Collin Costello to Keeley on the right side. Keeley made a neat play to dummy the ball through himself and a defender, and he caught up to it on the other side and made a perfect cross to Leibensperger.
Just 2:17 later, Plourde sent Keeley in on a wide open breakaway, and Keeley finished easily, giving him five points in a span of jst 10:04.
The Bison combined for 11 assists on the seven goals, including two each by Costello, Keeley and Willings. Meyer logged one goal and one assist. Freshman Chris Thorsheim also tallied an assist, the second of his career.
Bucknell, which avenged a 1-0 loss at Adelphi last season, finished with an 18-7 shot advantage and a 4-2 edge in corner kicks. Fox had one save for the Bison, while Salamah made six for the Panthers.
The Bucknell men's soccer program dates back to 1929, and only eight times previously have the Bison scored more than seven goals in a game. This was Bucknell's highest scoring output against a Division I opponent since 1973, when it defeated Rutgers 8-4.
Class of '98 Invitational co-host Penn State defeated Albany 1-0 on Friday night. The Great Danes will be at Bucknell on Sunday for a 1 p.m. start at Emmitt Field.
