SWARTHMORE, Pa.—Swarthmore College Men's Soccer moved up into fifth place in the Centennial Conference standings on Saturday with a 2-1 win over the Gettysburg College Bullets.
Omri Gal gave the Garnet an early lead, and after Gettysburg equalized the score in the second-half,
Ryan Meuth provided the difference-maker to elevate Swarthmore (5-7-1, 2-2-1 Centennial) over Gettysburg (7-3-1, 2-3-0). If the playoffs were to begin now, the Garnet would be in as the fifth seed and the Bullets would be right on the outside looking in.
Swarthmore took the lead at the start of the 11th minute on a play that began with a well-executed slide tackle by freshman
Cameron Ricciardi near midfield. Ricciardi popped up from the slide quickly and played the ball forward to
Michael Nafziger. Nafziger quickly got rid of the ball, sending a pass in behind Gettysburg's defense for
Billy Evers. Evers, who was giving Gettysburg's defense fits from the left wing all game, drew two defenders and the goalkeeper towards him as he attacked towards the left post. Evers slipped the ball across the goalmouth to Gal on the right side who then tapped it in for his first goal of the season.
The Garnet had a strong control of possession in the early stages of the game and earned six corner kicks in the first 15 minutes. Once the second half started, the Bullets threatened and finally broke through in the 54th minute. Swarthmore goalkeeper
Tyler Zon parried away a cross into the box, but before Zon could recover, the ball bounced back into the penalty area where Gettysburg's Patrick Santini fired in the equalizer from close range.
With both teams looking for an opportunity to break the deadlock, Swarthmore got a chance in the 75th minute when
Omodayo Origunwa was fouled outside the penalty area. The foul set up a free kick for
Ryan Meuth, a straight on look at the goal from about 25 yards out. Meuth struck a shot over the six-player ball that dipped below the crossbar and passed the stunned Gettysburg goalkeeper. The goal is Meuth's fourth, a team-best.
With 15 minutes to go, Swarthmore's defense locked down and denied the Bullets any scoring opportunities.
Tyler Zon earned the win between the posts and recorded four saves.
Swarthmore continues Centennial Conference play on Saturday at 4 p.m. on the road against McDaniel College.
