NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Carleton College men’s soccer team inched closer to clinching a playoff berth after knocking off conference foe Hamline University, 2-0, on Wednesday. That result extend the Knights’ unbeaten streak to 10 straight matches. Mark Roth (Sr./Evanston, Ill./Evanston Township) and Marco da Cunha (Fy./San Francisco, Calif./San Francisco University) were the goal scorers in the contest.
The Knights (11-1-2, 4-1-2 MIAC) have been dominant when it comes to chances created this season, which they continued against the Pipers (5-6-1, 2-5-1 MIAC) by outshooting the visitors 22-4, as well as having a 6-1 advantage in corner kicks.
Both teams had barely settled in before Carleton almost got the scoring started in the second minute when Tarek Bos-Shadi (So./Bradley, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) got his foot on a loose ball in the box and blasted a low shot that forced the Hamline goalie into a tough save. The Knights kept up the pressure with a lot of action in the Pipers box, which Roth capped off with a stunning goal in the 12th minute.
For his third goal of the season, Roth curved a corner kick directly in from the right flag into the top left of the goal. This Olimpico goal proved to be the lone breakthrough of the first period, but Carleton had all the momentum having outshot Hamline, 15-0, over the first 45 minutes.
In the second half the Knights continued their all-around solid play, highlighted by da Cunha’s goal in the 68th minute. Defender Tashi Tsering (Sr./Stillwater, Minn/Stillwater) made a nice run up the left flank before his through pass found an unmarked da Cunha in the center of the box for an easy chip in. For da Cunha, the goal was his eighth goal already on the season, tying him for the MIAC lead.
Aaron Forman (So./Los Angeles, Calif./Windward) had his fifth consecutive shutout for the Knights, finishing with two saves during the contest.
The victory also pushed the Knights up into a tie for third place in the conference standings. With three matches left in the season Carleton is in prime position to extend their current run of 11 consecutive postseason appearances, the longest active streak in the MIAC.
Up next the Knights will hit the road to take on Bethel University this Saturday, Oct. 20 at 3:30pm. This will be the second half of doubleheader with the women’s team with the opening match kicking off at 1:00pm.
