Box Score Having little to play for other than momentum, the Eastern Mennonite men's soccer team picked up a 2-0 win over Bridgewater on the road Tuesday. The men had already clinched the second seed in the ODAC Tournament, which starts this weekend.
After a back-and-forth first half, the Royals took control late in the period. Mark Mast (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) took a pass on top of the box in the 41st minute, turned and drove a shot in the bottom right corner of the net for a 1-0 lead.
The men nearly scored again in the closing seconds of the half. Adam Moyer (Harleysville, VA/Christopher Dock) had a shot saved from close range. Senior Mitchell Leap (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) was there to knock in the rebound, but was whistled offsides to negate the goal.
Leap finally found net in the second. Off a Jared Ross (Sarasota, FL/Sarasota Christian) corner in the 60th minute, Leap was wide open for a backside header, getting his ninth goal of the season for a 2-0 edge.
The defense worked well down the stretch to draw the Eagles offsides, drastically limiting their scoring opportunities as the men cruised to the win.
Eastern Mennonite had a 14-9 edge in shots, with shots on goal being even at 6-6. Freshman keeper Andrew Yoder (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) played the game in place of injured starter Patrick Fox (Virginia Beach, VA/Kempsville) and collected six saves.
Bryce Shank (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) helped the men control the midfield and also led the team with six shots.
The Royals close the regular season with a 9-7-2 mark, including 7-2-1 in the ODAC. With the decision, Bridgewater slides to 7-10-1 and 4-5-1, locking the Eagles into the seventh seed and a rematch with EMU Saturday in Harrisonburg. The Royals finished in a tie with Roanoke at 7-2-1 atop the league standings, but the Maroons get the top seed based on a head-to-head win over EMU.
The full tournament bracket will be released on Wednesday.
