ONEONTA, NY – Dean Fowler's (Sydney, Australia/Colo HS) first career goal in the fifteenth minute held up as Hartwick’s men’s soccer team stayed unbeaten in conference play Friday night with a 1-0 shutout of West Virginia in a match played on Elmore Field. Hartwick has now won three straight games and improves to 4-5-2 overall.
            Fowler’s goal came on the first real chance of the match for either team. Max Walcott (London, England/West Herts College) started the play as he bolted down the right sideline, got deep into WVU territory, and served a low cross into the Mountaineer box. Will Broomfield (Brighton, England/Cloud Community College) met the ball and got a touch, continuing it for Fowler, who was unmarked. His shot took a deflection but eluded WVU keeper Lee Johnston for the 1-0 Hartwick lead at 14:53.
            The Mountaineers would out-shoot the Hawks 7-1 in the opening half but none of the WVU shots would trouble Hartwick goalkeeper Mateo Munarriz (Manizales, Colombia/Colegio Granadino) until the final minute.
            With less than thirty seconds remaining in the half, a nice cross from WVU leading scorer Andy Bevin from the left side was headed out by a Hartwick defender close to the goal line. The ball popped out to the penalty spot where Hayden Bennett ripped a shot at goal but defender Ross MacKinnon (Glasgow, Scotland/Jordanhill School) was on the line to head the ball away and keep the game level.
            In the second half, the Mountaineers again held a 7-1 edge in shots but all seven were off-target. The best chance of the match for the visitors came with 23 minutes left in the contest. A service from the right side into the Hartwick box came all the way to an unmarked Bevin. He one-timed his shot but it ricocheted off the near post and out of play.
            The Hawks had a few dangerous services into the WVU box in the second half but couldn’t get on the end of them. Alex Ochoa had the last shot for the Mountaineers with 2:24 left but it sailed high over the ’Wick crossbar and the Hawks secured the victory.
            Munarriz was not called upon to make a save in earning his second straight clean sheet for Hartwick. He has not conceded a goal in the last 187:32 of action.
            With the victory, Hartwick jumps Akron into first place in the MAC with a 2-0 mark. It is the first time the Hawks have been 2-0 in league play since 2009. ’Wick improves to 3-1 all-time against the Mountaineers.
            Hartwick takes its 2-0 conference record into Tuesday as it travels to the University at Buffalo for a 7 p.m. match.