The Royals got the win they needed to put themselves into position to make the tourney.  And later Tuesday night they got the help they were hoping for as a Guilford loss put EMU's soccer men into the ODAC Tournament.

Sophomore Juan Luna (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson) bent in a free kick in the 60th minute, providing the only score in Eastern Mennonite's 1-0 win over rival Bridgewater on Senior Night.  Lined up at a nearly impossible angle on the left side of the box, Luna caught BC's keeper off guard by hitting the upper right corner, sending the home crowd into a frenzy.

The Royals still had to hold off the Eagles with their renewed attack.  Bridgewater fired eight shots over the final 30 minutes, and there were plenty of close calls.  In the 79th minute the Eagles put a shot off the crossbar.  After a corner three minutes later, senior Issac Peglow (Milroy, Pa./Indian Valley) headed out another BC attempt, clearing it off the line to preserve the lead.

Freshman Ryan Zerkel (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson), making his first collegiate start in goal, made a pair of big saves over the final three minutes of the game as the Royals got the shutout.

BC ended up with a 13-7 advantage in shots, including 4-2 on goal.  Jake Lind (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) had the Royals' other shot on goal.  Zerkel finished with three saves as he was filling in for senior Andrew Yoder (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite), who was injured in Saturday's loss at Randolph.

Although they felt good about their chances with the win, the men had to wait another hour to find out they were indeed going to the ODAC Tournament.  With top-seeded Roanoke beating Guilford in double overtime, the Royals knew they had finished the season in a three-way tie for sixth place, meaning they would make the eight-team tourney.  EMU is tied with Bridgewater and Randolph, and the trio each finished 1-1 against each other.  They won't know their final seed in the ODAC field until completion of conference games Wednesday night, but they know they'll hit the road.  The ODAC Tournament starts Saturday with quarterfinals hosted by the top four seeds.

Senior Recognition Night
The Royals honored their six seniors before the game: Andrew Yoder, Issac Peglow, Adam Moyer (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock), Joao Downs (Limon, Costa Rica/Colegio de Limon Diurno), Mark Mast (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) and David Hooley (Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton).

Coach Roger Mast talks about the win and his thoughts on the ODAC Tournament: