Men’s Soccer Championship Central
Men's Soccer Championship Bracket
No. 4 seed Hartwick advances to third consecutive semifinal, defeats No. 5 seed Appalachian State 2-1
ATLANTA – The No. 4 seeded Hartwick Hawks used two second-half strikes to make a third consecutive semifinal appearance in the Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Championship with a 2-1 defeat of No. 5 seed Appalachian State.
Hartwick (9-5-4) freshman Hamish Ritchie scored the match’s first tally in the 68th minute when he headed home a corner off the right stick from senior Jack Donaldson. Ritchie, the Co-Freshman of the Year this year, headed in the in-bending service from Donaldson to score his third goal of the season.
Redshirt senior Maurizio Fornerino provided the game-winning strike after he received a pass from senior Mike Rood on the left side of the 18-yard box and fired a right-footed low strike just inside the far post.
Appalachian State (5-9-4) freshman Graham Smalley put the Mountaineers on the board off an outstanding feed from junior Rian Phillips after senior Stephen Chapman found him at the top of the 18-yard box following a run down the right side. Phillips one-timed a right-footed pass to the far post to find Smalley running down the left side who chipped the ball easily into the top of the net.
App State nearly went on the board first in the 8th minute when senior Jordan Melia struck a corner kick low and to the top of the 18-yard box at the feet of sophomore Daniel Avila. Avila curled in a shot struck the crossbar and led to a follow up chance by junior Andrew Goodman which was saved by Hartwick goalkeeper Lenny Wilson.
Wilson made that one save to earn the victory and improve to 8-4-2 on the season. App State senior Jake Agnew, who made three saves, fell to 4-4-4 on the year in the defeat.
With the win, Hartwick advanced to the semifinals to take on the No. 1 seed Coastal Carolina at 3 p.m. ET on Friday at the GSU Soccer Complex.
All tournament matches will be broadcasted by the Sun Belt Digital Network and available for viewing for free on SunBeltSports.org.