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BY VICTOR BRADY

In print | Published September 24, 2009 — Updated October 07, 2009 17:15

In front of over 600 vocal fans at Clothier Field – and with hundreds more watching the live video feed online – the #9 Swarthmore men’s soccer team continued their winning streak to start the 2009 campaign, defeating the #25 Johns Hopkins Blue Jays by a score of 1-0 last Saturday.

For the first time since 1991, Swarthmore has now won back-to-back games against their Centennial Conference rivals, stringing Saturday’s victory to last year’s Centennial Conference Championship, which the Garnet won by a score of 1-0. This regular season win over Hopkins (6-2, 0-1 CC) was Swarthmore’s first since 2003.

It took just six minutes for the Garnet (7-0, 1-0 CC) to light the scoreboard. Showing off blazing speed, Morgan Langley ’11 took a long pass from defender Brett McLarney ’12 and beat the Hopkins netminder for his team-leading fifth goal of the year.

That one tally proved to be all that the Garnet would need.

“We got the early goal, and it really set the tone for the rest of the night. We established that they weren’t going to be able to keep us from scoring, and I think that really put all of the pressure on them. All of the pressure in the world,” head coach Eric Wagner said.

Though the game against Hopkins was only the first in 2009 conference play, it represents a crucial victory.

Pierre Dyer ’12 outlined a few reasons why: “Because it was our first Centennial Conference game, we had to come out strong,” he said of the Hopkins match. “It was the game that would tell how well we can play against highly skilled teams. [The win] showed us all what we are capable of.”

Dyer, a critical part of the Garnet lockdown defense, cited “keeping our composure and focus during important matches,” as an on-the-field area of consequence for the men.

“The young back line is led by Gage Newman ‘11, who was named Centennial Conference Defender of the Week earlier this month. He continued to act as a linchpin in front of the net on Saturday, directing the traffic and keeping a fast Johns Hopkins offense at bay.

According to Wagner, “[Newman’s] style is very different from what we’ve had in the past, but it is very effective. It is athletic; it is reading the game; it’s experience to the point where he knows what he needs to do, and the other guys really feed off of his confidence.”

Newman, the senior member of the group, is humbled by the honor and quick to give credit to those around him. “We just have a strong back line,” he said, noting that the all of the defense is worthy of recognition. In particular, Newman tabbed John Pontillo ’13, known affectionately as “Samurai Steel” among his teammates, as a major factor in what is proving to be a stalwart defense.

Newman’s leadership by example and experience has helped the defense to gel into a fabulous unit. Unselfish play has been contagious throughout the entire team, with 10 players having scored for the Garnet through the first six games.

Newman added that “it seemed to me like [Hopkins was] just waiting for us to make a mistake that they could capitalize on. … We stayed pretty organized shifting from side to side, and so they didn’t end up with too many chances.” Those few shots on goal that they did manage, Newman pointed out, were blocked in a superb effort by goalkeeper David D’Annunzio ’12.

By not giving up a goal in the Hopkins win, the Garnet extended their shutout streak to 307 minutes. D’Annunzio has not allowed a goal all year, and Swarthmore has allowed only one all year. But the sophomore goaltender was tested against the potent Blue Jays offense.

Hopkins outshot the Garnet by a 19-12 margin, but amidst chants of his name from the crowd, D’Annunzio was perfect, making save after save and organizing the defense in front of him. He left the match with six saves in his third shutout of the year.

A good team wins games, but a great team always looks to improve, even after wins. And even though Swarthmore is off to a 6-0 start, both the players and Coach Wagner recognize that there is room for improvement. “I think that we can work on our off-the-ball runs,” Kieran Riechert ’13 said.

Wagner added that “we definitely aren’t playing perfectly yet, and our goal is to continue to improve, so we are going to try to improve in all areas of our game.”

And the coaches and players certainly appreciate playing in front large crowds. Wagner pointed out the value of having, noting that it is “exciting to have that kind of interest and that kind of excitement for our program. … We look forward to the next chance to impress our home fans.”

The men’s soccer team will take the field next against another ranked – and undefeated – opponent on the road against Centennial Conference rival #18 Dickinson (6-0, 1-0 CC) on Saturday.

The Garnet will return home to face Washington (2-4, 0-1 CC) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

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