No. 25 Garnet Clinch Playoff Spot
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- The 25th-ranked Swarthmore men's soccer team slid into first place in the Centennial Conference following a 4-0 win over visiting McDaniel. Saturday's match was called in the 78th minute due to unplayable conditions.
The Garnet have 18 points in Centennial action this season, clinching their fourth Conference playoff berth in the last five seasons. Swarthmore (12-2-1, 6-1 CC) also leap-frogs Johns Hopkins (5-0-2 in Centennial) into first place with two matches left in the regular season. The six wins ties the program record for Conference victories by the Garnet men and extend their current overall win streak to seven games in a row; the last time the Garnet won seven games in a row was in 2005.
The first score of the night came when Garnet captain Dylan Langley ’10 (Honolulu, Hawaii / Iolani) broke away from the Green Terror defense and sent a long pass to senior forward Evan Nesterak (Parker, Colo. / Ponderosa). Nesterak scored his sixth goal of the season, finding the net at 28:44.
Late in the first half Swarthmore freshman David Sterngold (Muncy, Pa. / Muncy) took advantage of a rebound off the Green Terror goalie, driving a shot in the middle of the net to mark the second goal for the Garnet. This goal is Sterngold's fifth of the season.
Garnet captain Rory Stackpole (Stanford, Maine / Stanford) collected his first career goal off a penalty kick awarded to Swarthmore after senior forward Ladule Lako Lo Sarah (Davis, Calif. / Claremont) was taken down in the box in the 64th minute.
The final goal of the game was scored by Swarthmore senior midfielder Stu Leon (Wrentham, Mass. / King Philip Regional). Leon posted his first goal of the season in the 66th minute, redirecting a missed Green Terror clear. The midfielder now has 13 scores in his Garnet career.
The heavy rains and wind covering the East Coast produced lightning late in the second half, forcing officials to end the match in the 79th minute.
Swarthmore freshman David D’Annunzio (Piedmont, Calif. / Piedmont) registered one save on the way to collecting his fourth shut out of the season. McDaniel senior netminder Michael Ratcliffe made three saves in the first half while junior keeper Benjamin Knight had four in the second half.
McDaniel falls to 4-9-1 overall, 1-5-1 in the Centennial.
Swarthmore will travel to Allentown, Pa. on Wednesday, October 29 for a Centennial Conference contest. The Garnet will take on Muhlenberg (10-3-1, 3-2-1 CC) at 7:00 p.m. that will have serious playoff implications - the Mules sit in the fifth and final spot as of Sunday evening.
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