ALMA, Mich. – The Trine University men's soccer team played spoiler to the Alma College Scots senior day on Sunday afternoon by collecting a 2-0 victory on the road. The win puts Trine in sole possession of second-place in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) standings. The Thunder can clinch a first-round bye in the MIAA Tournament with an outright win against Adrian College on Tuesday.
Trine holds a record of 8-4-3 this season, with a 3-1-2 mark in MIAA action. Alma falls to 3-10-1 in 2022 and 1-4-1 in league play.
Shots came early an often for the Thunder on offense, including a Luke Kearns attempt in just the second minute and one each from Jarick Aguilar and Joey Donovan in the seventh minute. Francesco Mazzei and Liam Zimmerman also had shots for the visiting team before Alma was able to put one on target. Goalkeeper Aidan McGonagle made his first save of the contest in the 14th minute.
Nearly 20 minutes into play, Trine's offense came through for the first score of the afternoon. Donovan sent a pass across to the middle of the pitch and Zimmerman was there to convert for his first career goal.
That score would remain until the halftime break, but not before Tyler Murphy continued to push for a score with his first shot in the 35th minute.
Murphy provided insurance in the 53rd minute with his eighth goal of the year. In the 53rd minute, Zimmerman entered the penalty area from the left side after stealing the ball from the Scot defender. Zimmerman chipped a pass to Murphy, who struck the ball with the heel of his right foot while gliding through the air for the score.
Jay Stevens, Jared Cromwell, Abraham Antar and Alhusain Yahya all tallied shots late in the going to keep the pressure on and not allow Alma to build any momentum. McGonagle tallied his second and final save of the match in the 85th minute of the 2-0 victory.
In total, the Thunder outshot the Scots 17-8 and had six corner kicks, three in each half.
The final MIAA regular season match of 2022 takes place on Tuesday, October 25 at home versus Adrian College. Kick-off at Weaver Field is scheduled for 4 pm.