Having won four of their past five match-ups with the Vulcans, the Slippery Rock men’s soccer team traveled to California University on Sunday planning on picking up their third PSAC victory of the season. In a 4-0 win, The Rock cruised to its third away victory this season.
The win against one of the PSAC’s cellar-dwellers improved the Rock’s record to 4-7-3 (3-3-2 in-conference), was headlined by senior midfielder Tyler McCarthy’s hat trick and a combined shutout by goalies Jonathan Sharp, Matt Hunsberger, and Steven Rerick. The netminders profited from solid defense upfront, allowing only two total shots on target. Sharp, who now ranks 51st out of 150 goalies in the nation, made one save, as did Hunsberger.
Scoring was opened in the 20th minute of the first half when a Cal defender failed to clear the ball successfully, which allowed McCarthy to tally his fourth goal of the campaign on an assist from junior midfielder George Oakley. Oakley also assisted on McCarthy’s two subsequent goals in the 49th and 60th minutes, raising his season total to seven.
Freshman forward Sean Tinney added another goal for good measure in the 80th minute of the contest, his first in a Slippery Rock uniform. The goal was aided by sophomore forward Justin Minda and put away the game for good.
The team will conclude its two-game road trip in a matchup against the Mercyhurst Lakers, who are riding a two-game winning streak, on Wednesday.
