PHOENIXVILLE, PA – The Valley Forge Christian College Patriots men's soccer team notched their first victory of the season on Saturday (Aug 31), by a final score of 3-1, defeating Penn State Hazelton (Hazelton, PA). With today's win, the team now evens up their record at 1-1 after yesterday's opening round loss to Davis College (Johnson City, NY) in the Holiday Inn Express Kick-Off Tournament.
The Patriots got on the scoreboard first, as freshmen forward Joshua Wolf netted his first goal of the season in the fourth minute of play. Wolf was assisted by senior midfielder Matthew McKenzie.
Just five minutes later, Patriots junior defensemen Jonathan Hadinger drilled a free kick into the upper ninety to give VFCC a 2-0 lead. They would carry that lead into the halftime break.
In the 61:00 minute, PSU Hazelton got themselves on the board and began to gain momentum. After playing last night's double overtime thriller, and with today's heat index soaring, the Patriots looked as though they were beginning to falter. It would take several defensive stands and some superb goaltending from freshman Robert Taylor, to hold off a charging Penn State team. Patriots net-minder Taylor fought off shot after shot, recording 12 saves on the day.
As the minutes ticked away on the game clock, the Patriots began to push back, and after several attempts to find the back of the net faltered, senior midfielder Matthew McKenzie netted a soft touch from sophomore Jonathan Manning to seal the deal for Valley Forge in the 88th minute. Manning also added another shot on goal to his tally.
"The team worked very hard," explained Head Coach Vernon Dorsey, "Jon Hadinger scored on an incredible free kick into the upper 90 and Josh Wolf was rewarded for his tireless running and scored a wonderful goal from a Manning assist. I was really proud of how they played."
The Patriots will have a few days to recover before they begin to prepare for their next game when they travel to Penn State Harrisburg on Thursday, September 5. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm.
NOTE: The inaugural Holiday Inn Express Kick-Off Tournament championship was won by Christendom College (Front Royal, VA), as they defeated Davis College. Christendom forward Jon Fioramonti was named tournament MVP for his efforts this weekend.
