MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College men's soccer team blanked Nyack College, 3-0 in the 2021 season opener on Saturday afternoon at Melucci Field.
The Hawks start the season 1-0 while the Warriors fall to 0-2 after their opening weekend.
Prior to the start of the contest, Ethan Barbeau, Colin Cain, Jack Connors, Spencer Persson, Joshua Polakiewicz, and Jayden West of the Saint Anselm College Class of 2021 were honored with an official Senior Day, replacing the ceremony that was wiped out due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
After six scoring chances, which were all saved by goalkeeper Marco Rößle, junior Taylor Silverstein (Concord, N.H.) broke through in the 30th minute. The Hawks earned a throw-in which was taken by senior Zach Elliot (Manchester, N.H.) - he found sophomore Zach Verow (Bedford, N.H.), who was just outside the six-yard box. Verow chested the ball toward the middle of the box for Silverstein who buried the chance with his right foot into the top right corner of the goal. Verow earned his first collegiate point on the play.
Saint Anselm pushed the pace to close out the half but could not convert on their chances.
Elliot doubled the Hawks lead in the 50th minute when Silverstein won a contested ball down the left sideline. He sent a ball from outside the box towards a streaking Elliot who redirected the ball while in the air past Rößle. The goalkeeper was attacking to cut down the angle but the right foot of Elliot pushed the ball towards the bottom left of the goal to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead.
The senior captain recorded his second goal of the contest just 13 minutes later when he forced a pass back towards the Warrior goal. The ball did not make it to Rößle as Elliot ran by and buried a goal in the empty cage.
The best scoring opportunity for the Warriors came with just over five minutes left in regulation as Magnus Mesters, head a shot on goal which forced junior Brian Underhill (Westford, Mass.) to dive to his left to preserve the shutout.
The Hawks out-shot the Warriors, 18-9 overall with a 12-2 margin in shots on goal. Saint Anselm also held a 7-4 edge in corner kicks. The physical contest saw a total of 31 fouls, 17 on the hosts and 14 on the visitors.
Sophomore Ethan Northcott (Hollis, N.H.), Verow, Jonathan Alves (Peabody, Mass.), Jack O'Brien (Norton, Mass.), Caden Leader (Durham, N.H.), Logan Kline-Frenya (Plattsburgh, N.Y.), and Colin Miller (Nashua, N.H.) all made their collegiate debuts in the contest.
The Hawks return to action on Wednesday, Sept. 8 when at Roberts Wesleyan. The opening kick is scheduled for 4 p.m. The Warriors will matchup with their third straight Northeast-10 Conference opponent, Stonehill, on Wednesday for their home opener.
