BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The No. 19 Bloomsburg men's soccer team came away with a 1-1 draw at Steph Pettit Stadium against Millersville Saturday afternoon.

The Huskies (4-0-5, 1-0-3 PSAC East) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first half with a headed goal by Sam Blumberger (Colchester, Conn./Bacon Academy). While Bloosmburg looked to have momentum in the first half, the Marauders (5-3-3, 2-1-1 PSAC East) were the more assertive side in the second half, finding the equalizer and keeping the Huskies on their toes until the final whistle. 

As part of the team's Senior Day festivities, Bloomsburg honored 10 seniors. The players recognized during the pregame celebration were Braden Alicea (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Lower Moreland), Kody Besser (Lacey Township, N.J./Lacey Township), Sean Blatz (Whispering Pines, N.C./Union Pines), Sam Blumberger (Colchester, Conn./Bacon Academy), Micah Diggs (Groton, Conn./Fitch), Connor Fiadino (Burlington, N.J./Burlington Township), Jaliyl Melvin (Mount Holly, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional), Quaid Molino (Charleston, S.C./Wando (S.C.)), Zach Morales (Orefield, Pa./Parkland), and Ben Starner (East Pennsboro, Pa./East Pennsboro Area). 

How It Happened:
An early shot by Owen Hollobaugh (State College, Pa./State College) and the Bloomsburg offense set the early tone in the first half before a response by Millersville on the other end. Around the five-minute mark, the Marauders drew a pair of corners, getting a pair of shots blocked sandwiched between the set pieces.

The Huskies began to create from their own dead-ball setups, with Besser getting a shot blocked, as the eventual spell of possession led to Bloomsburg's first corner of the day. On the far side of the field, Alicea dropped in a looping ball to the back post to find Blumberger. The forward is elevated above the rest to drive a header into the bottom right corner and give the Huskies an early 1-0 lead.

Bloomsburg continued to generate positive play in the attacking half with several near misses in the minutes following the goal. Owen Peri (Dallastown, Pa./Dallastown) had the first shot following the goal, sending a shot over the crossbar following a flick-on in the box. The Huskies' threat from corners loomed, as Diggs saw his effort glide narrowly over the crossbar following a well-designed routine. Jake Pacacha (Shelton, Conn./St. Joseph) forced the first save of the contest from the Millersville after his solo effort starting in Bloomsburg's defensive half saw the junior rifle a shot toward the upper part of the goal that was securely caught. 

Millersville built some positive attacking movements inside the final 10 minutes of the first half, with a header from a set piece going outside of the left post, before a pair of shots near the box for the Marauders were blocked by Bloomsburg defenders.  

The Huskies nearly found their insurance goal in the beginning moments of the second half. After Zayd DeVeaux (Philadelphia, Pa./Springside Chestnut Hill Academy) won possession from a goal kick in the midfield, the sophomore played Fiadino down the left side. The former Marauder took a hack at goal, with his shot leading to a save that spilled back into the box. Fiadino managed to recover and win the race back to the loose ball, with the pass going from Owen Hollobaugh (State College, Pa./State College) into a dump off for Pacacha and another stop for Millersville. Fiadino, a minute later, was inches away from the goal, as his effort that rippled the back of the net was ruled offside.

The near disaster for the Marauders sparked the visitors' efforts for the rest of the match, seemingly. Millersville found a new gear in its attacking and possession efforts. In the 24 minutes following the Huskies' near-second goal, the Marauders rattled off 10 shots while generating three corners to build swelling pressure in Bloomsburg's defensive half. Millersville found its breakthrough moment 73 minutes into the match, with Fallou Cisse playing a cross to an unchecked Zander Leik streaking inside of the six-yard box and putting away a header to even the game/

The Marauders' pressure did not relent in the subsequent moments, with Bloomsburg goalkeeper Peter Punchello (Jamison, Pa./William Penn Charter) making a number of key stops to keep the game at one goal apiece. The Huskies managed to create critical chances late in hopes of finding the game-winner. Blumberger almost doubled his match tally, just putting a header over the crossbar from a corner delivery by Molino. Bloomsburg's last shot at goal was a nearly-perfect setup, as the Millersville goalkeeper came off his line to clear a ball that fell directly to Fiadino. The attacker played Hollobaugh through with a pass following his dribble before getting the ball returned to his feet. Fiadino one-timed the shot with his left foot, as a Marauder defender inadvertently stepped in front of the shot to deny the goal and the Huskies the win. 

On the Horizon:
The Huskies are back at Steph Pettit Stadium on Wednesday, October 15, at 4:00 p.m. for a nonconference contest with unbeaten Roberts Wesleyan.