Bradford, PA -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's soccer team finished its regular season on Saturday with a home matchup against Mount Aloysius. The Panthers scored in the 2nd minute, but would not score again and could not keep the Mounties down, losing the contest 6-1.
The game started quickly as Pitt-Bradford got on the board after 64 seconds. After a misplayed pass by the Mount Aloysius defense, Zhennan Sun beat a midfielder to the loose ball and touched a pass to Kyle Carlsen. The sophomore midfielder took a touch and blasted a shot from 35 yards away that swerved into the upper 90 for the opening goal. It was his 2nd goal of the season. The visitors went back on the attack after the goal and controlled the majority of possession. The Panthers held off the Mounties for half an hour, using two saves by Whitacker Sackman and one by a defender off the line. In the 31st, the visitors finally broke through, beating the Panthers with a long ball and a flicked header into the corner. Less than a minute after the restart, Cole Holland made a run down the left flank and played a pass behind the defense for Brady Hathaway. The junior attacker beat the defender to the ball and aimed a shot to the near post, but saw his effort parried away.
The Mounties missed a pair of shots in the next few minutes, but were able to take the lead in the 39th after an attacker took the ball off a Panther defender and placed a shot into the corner. Hathaway had another chance to answer two minutes after the goal, as Yihao Xu lifted a pass behind the defense for the striker. Hathaway beat the keeper and the defender to the ball, but his chipped shot missed the net wide. The Panthers would rue the missed chance two minutes later as the Mounties tacked on a third with just 45 seconds until the break. In the final seconds, the Panthers appeared to cut the lead in half, but the goal was called off. After a one-touch passing move on the right flank, Bailee Verdill chased down a pass behind the defense. He seemed to have dispossessed the defender, but after Xu put a shot into the open net, the goal was ruled out for a foul.
The visitors went back on the attack after the restart, and quickly added to their lead, scoring in the 47th and 53rd minutes. They would add another goal in the 66th on a corner kick. The Panthers managed six shots on goal in the second stanza, but all of them were saved in the Mount Aloysius goal.
Kyle Carlsen scored his 2nd goal of the season on a spectacular long-distance shot. He totaled 4 shots in the game, putting them all on target. Zhennan Sun was credited with an assist on the Panthers' goal, while also putting a pair of shots on goal. Bailee Verdill and Brady Hathaway also put one shot on goal each. Whitaker Sackman finished with 5 saves in the Pitt-Bradford goal.
The Panthers finish the regular season with a 7-9-1 record and a 3-5 mark in AMCC play. They have clinched the 6th seed in next weekend's AMCC Tournament. The Panthers will learn their opponent next Tuesday, when conference play wraps up and final standings are determined.
