WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Junior captain Joseph Schmid (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) scored the game-winning goal as the Monmouth University men’s soccer team won its fourth straight game with a 2-1 decision against Robert Morris. With the win, the Hawks move to 9-3-2 (4-1-1 NEC), while the Colonials fall to 4-9-2 (1-4-1 NEC).

 

“I thought it was a fantastic effort from the guys today,” said Monmouth Head Coach Robert McCourt. “We worked hard for 90 minutes. We created a bunch of goal-scoring chances on one side and we were very solid defensively on the other side, so it was a good win for us in conference.”

 

Freshman midfielder Tomas Penfold (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale) also scored in the win. Alex Blackburn (Natick, Mass./Natick) made four saves in earning the victory in net, while his counterpart Robert Morris’ Toba Bolaji made three saves in defeat.

 

The Hawks wasted little time taking the advantage, with Penfold heading in Ryan Clark’s (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township) free kick service into the box in the ninth minute. Monmouth again struck early in second half, as Schmid rocketed the rebound of a Francois “Paco” Navarro (Paris, France) shot inside the near post past Bolaji in the 52^nd minute.

 

The Colonials cut the deficit in half on Miro Cabrilo’s free kick just atop the 18-yard box in the 68^th minute. But the Colonials couldn’t score the equalizer in the final minutes. Schmid nearly completed a highlight-reel goal late in regulation, beating his defender to the goal line wide of the net, before flipping a shot at an impossible angle that clipped the crossbar and continued over the net.

 

For the game, the Colonials took a 14-10 edge in shots, while MU took a 6-4 advantage in corner kicks.

 

Monmouth returns to action Sunday, when it plays host to Saint Francis (Pa.). Kickoff from The Great Lawn is scheduled for 3 p.m.