ST. BONIFACIUS, Minn. – Battle-hardened by a tough non-conference schedule, the University of Minnesota Morris men's soccer team dispatched Crown College by a score of 4-1 in the UMAC opener on Saturday afternoon.
The Cougars were the stronger team throughout the match, taking the lead in the 11th minute off of a corner kick.
Carver Hammond opened the scoring with an assist to
Carter Watkinson to make it 1-0.
Despite an 11-2 edge in shots for Minnesota Morris in the opening 45 minutes, Crown was able to get to halftime without any further damage. That changed in the second half as
Mayson Palen scored his first career goal for the Cougars in the 58th minute and
Matt Gearou added on seconds after entering as a substitute with a 70th-minute score to make it 3-0.
The Storm were able to pull one back in the 77th minute, but that was canceled out by a late tally from
Matt Heyel in the 83rd minute, ending any hopes for the home crowd of a late Crown comeback.
Minnesota Morris enjoyed a 16-6 edge in total shots, seven of which were on target.
Lucas Harmon made three saves to pick up his first win of the season in goal.
The Cougars play their final non-conference match of the season on Tuesday night, taking on Macalester College at 7:30 p.m. in St. Paul.
