SWARTHMORE, Pa. - The Swarthmore College men's soccer team battled to a 1-1 draw against Haverford College in an entertaining matchup to close out Garnet Weekend on Saturday night. The Garnet secured the No. 3 seed in the Centennial Conference Tournament and will host Muhlenberg College on Tuesday.
JohnPaul D'Andrea provided the equalizer for the Garnet, continuing his red-hot stretch with his eighth goal in the past six games. The junior has scored in three consecutive contests while serving as the centerpiece of Swarthmore's offensive surge.
Len Yamabe assisted on Swarthmore's equalizer while leading the offense with four shots. Joseph Marinello V also made an impact, creating several quality scoring opportunities in his first game back from injury.
Colin Crowe anchored the defense with five saves to keep the Garnet within striking distance. The sophomore came up with several highlight-reel stops in the opening half to help Swarthmore secure the draw.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Crowe kept the Fords off the scoreboard with a couple saves in the opening 10 minutes. The sophomore calmly corralled an attempt in the sixth minute, before making a diving stop in the ninth minute.
- Ned Spaniel helped prevent a goal in the 11th minute after clearing away a loose ball that snuck past Crowe. The Garnet keeper then responded with an unbelievable save on a header following a free kick from just outside the box. Crowe leaped to the opposite post, and just narrowly redirected a dangerous attempt.
- Yamabe snuck a ball through traffic in the 14th minute, but had his shot cleared away by the keeper. Haverford outshot the Garnet 8-4 in the opening half, with a 5-1 edge in shots on target. Crowe was excellent in the half, making four saves to blank the Fords.
- Yamabe nearly broke the scoreless draw in the 50th minute. Kaden Cho made an excellent feed to the senior, who fired a strike just wide from an extremely difficult angle. Marinello created another quality scoring attempt in his return to the lineup. The first-year weaved through traffic, but sent his attempt a few inches above the crossbar.
- The Fords broke the scoreless drought with a goal in the 69th minute. Swarthmore nearly responded in the 72nd minute with a header from Marinello, which was saved by the keeper. Yamabe set up the scoring chance with a stellar pass, while Marinello continued to cause problems for the Haverford defense. Moments later, Yamabe hit the post on a free kick from just outside the box.
- Late in the second half, Swarthmore continued to turn up the intensity as its offense took over the game. Anzel Zhen was robbed by a remarkable save in the 76th minute off a free kick, which resulted in a corner attempt. The Garnet then scored off the ensuing corner after D'Andrea redirected the ball past the keeper. Yamabe, who showcased his elite playmaking ability all night, sent the corner into traffic to record an assist.
GARNET LEADERS
Goals: D'Andrea 1
Assists: Yamabe 1
Shots: Yamabe 4
Saves: Crowe 5
UP NEXT
The Garnet (7-7-3, 5-3-1) host Muhlenberg College on Tuesday in the opening round of the Centennial Tournament.
