The EMU soccer men dominated visiting Albright College in Harrisonburg on Saturday, getting a full effort from both defensive and offensive sides of the ball. But somehow, the contest remained scoreless with less than 12 minutes left.
That’s when Juan Luna (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson) and Parker Leap (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) got together. Again.
The duo stopped the clock with 11:17 left as Luna fed Leap for a score as he was surrounded by red-clad Lions defenders. To close out any doubt, Leap returned the favor with 3:04 remaining, pulling Albright’s keeper to the near post and finding Luna in front for his seventh goal of the season.
The two men have combined to net EMU’s last seven goals and 12 of the team’s 16 this season.
Eastern Mennonite’s defense, meanwhile, held firm for their fourth shutout. The Royals also have a four-game winning streak, pushing their overall record to 5-1-2.
Keeper Matthew Overacker (Mount Crawford, Va./Turner Ashby) made a pair of saves, and his defenders pitched in with a defensive save as well, coming in the 84th minute to prevent a potential equalizer.
The Royals also had a great scoring chance in the 54th minute, when Carlos Flores-Melgar (Woodbridge, Va./Gar-Field) glanced one off the post. EMU had a 21-7 advantage in shots. Luna led all players with three shots on goal. Freshmen Caleb Oakes (Waynesboro, Va./Waynesboro) and Joshua Chiquillo (Woodbridge, Va./Gar-Field) each put two shots on the mark.
Click here to see all the photos taken by photographer Scott Eyre at the EMU game against Albright.
The men will look to ride their momentum into Wednesday’s home clash with rival Bridgewater College. Game time on EMU’s Turf Field is7:00pm.