BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University men's soccer team snapped a three-game losing skid in impressive fashion on Wednesday night as the Huskies upset 18th-ranked West Chester University, 2-0, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division clash at Steph Pettit Stadium. Bloomsburg improved to 4-6 overall and 3-2 in divisional play while the Golden Rams dropped to 7-2-1 overall and suffered their first conference setback of the year (4-1-1).
The victory was the second straight for the Huskies against the Golden Rams in the all-time series as Bloomsburg beat West Chester 2-1 last season ending the Golden Rams' winning streak of defeating PSAC teams at 22 games.
Junior
Carter Luckenbaugh (York, Pa./Central York) notched his fifth goal of the season just 3:12 into the match when his header got past West Chester goalkeeper Daniel Good to give the Huskies a 1-0 advantage. Junior
Kacper Grycel (Allentown, Pa./Emmaus) had the assist after finding Luckenbaugh in front of the cage with a header of his own.
Luckenbaugh held the team lead in goals for just over 81 minutes until senior
Tyler Madeira (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) gave the Huskies an insurance marker in the 84th minute - his fifth goal of the year - as Bloomsburg extended the margin to 2-0. Sophomore
Bryce Evans (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) sent the ball up the left wing that Madeira was able to chase down, beat a defender, and chip a shot past Good to essentially seal the victory.
The offense gave redshirt freshman
Nathan Slotnick (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) his first collegiate victory in his first career home start. Slotnick was sensational in goal, making several remarkable diving stops during his eight-save performance on the night. He improved to 1-1 on the season and collected his first career shutout. Good, meanwhile, dropped to 7-2-1 on the year as he was credited with six saves. Statistically, the teams were quite even - Bloomsburg held a slim 19-18 margin in shots while West Chester owned an 8-5 edge in corner kick opportunities.
Bloomsburg will look to continue to climb the PSAC Eastern Division standings when it heads to Millersville University on Saturday, October 12. Kickoff is slated for 5:00 p.m. at Pucillo Field.
