A steady rain couldn't slow EMU's soccer men Tuesday night.  Smelling the ODAC Tournament, the Royals scored four second-half goals to rout visiting Emory & Henry, 4-0, and take over control of their playoff picture.

Eastern Mennonite entered the day in a three-way tie with EHC and Shenandoah for the eighth and final spot in next week's tourney.  But with the Hornets falling 1-0 at Randolph-Macon in the afternoon, paired with the big win over Emory & Henry, the Royals move three points ahead of both teams.

The men end the season at home Saturday night, hosting Hampden-Sydney, which is currently 2-7.  Although a win or tie against the Tigers would clinch an ODAC berth, EMU still could finish anywhere from seventh to ninth in the conference standings.

The Royals possessed the ball more over the first 45 minutes against Emory & Henry and had a couple of good scoring chances, but the game was still scoreless at halftime.

That changed quickly in the second, spearheaded by Juan Luna (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson).  In the 50th minute, senior Jake Lind (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) sprinted up the left wing to chase down a long pass.  His centering touch found Luna right in front of the goal for a quick settle and score.  Just over four minutes later the pair connected again, with Luna again springing open inside the top of the box.

In the 60th minute, senior Derek Harnish (Strasburg, Pa./Lampeter Strasburg) scored his first career goal, punching in Luna's rebounded corner.  Freshman Erik Peachey (Lititz, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) also scored for the first time, tapping in a rebounded shot from Dominic Powers (Culpeper, Va./Fiesta Valley) in the 73rd minute.

Eastern Mennonite dominated the second where they out-shot their visitors 20-7.  For the game, the men had a 31-13 advantage, including 13-4 on goal.  They also had a 14-5 edge in corner attempts.

Daniel Nyce (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) was solid on the wet night, making four saves to earn the shutout.

Game time on Saturday night is 7:00pm, as EMU and Hampden-Sydney are slated to have the last game of the ODAC's regular season, with all other games starting earlier in the day on Saturday.  It will also be Senior Recognition Night for the Royals, with ceremonies preceding the contest.

The quarterfinals of the ODAC Tournament are next week Wednesday, with the semifinals and Championship the weekend of Nov. 7 & 8.  All three of those final games will be hosted in one weekend by the highest remaining seed.

Coach Roger Mast said he loved to see his offense get things going against Emory & Henry, despite the wet conditions: