Ried's First Career Goal Lifts Warriors Over Assumption, 1-0
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Freshman back Ronald Ried (Schwendi, Germany) headed home his first collegiate goal in the 52nd minute, and that was all the Merrimack men's soccer team would need en route to its seventh consecutive victory – a 1-0 decision – against Northeast-10 Conference foe Assumption College on Saturday afternoon at Martone-Mejail Field.
Emerging victorious for the seventh time in seven tries since last suffering a loss back on Sept. 11, the Warriors improve to 9-2-1 on the season with a 7-2 mark within the NE-10. The Greyhounds fall to 3-7-1 overall and 2-6-1 in league play.
Remaining true to the theme that has evolved during their undefeated stretch, the Warriors mustered few scoring opportunities during the course of the game, but capitalized on the one that mattered and benefitted from another outstanding showing from its suffocating defense.
Sophomore goalkeeper Jose Silva (Northborough, Mass.) needed to record only one save on Saturday thanks to the effort of the experienced Merrimack backline which held the Greyhounds to just one shot on target. His counterpart, Dana King, notched two saves and allowed the lone goal of the game for the visitors.
With the contest scoreless in the 52nd minute, Merrimack was awarded a corner kick early in the second half. Senior forward Franklin Lemus Pena (Revere, Mass.) served a beauty into the box, where classmate Olof Lindhe (Stockholm, Sweden) first got a piece of it with his head. The airborne ball found its way to Ried, who headed it into the upper-right corner of the net to give the Warriors a one-score lead they would never relinquish.
Assumption attempted four shots in both halves but did not test Silva until midway through the second frame. Aside from a few loose balls in the box off of scrums and set pieces, Silva went relatively untested en route to his seventh shutout of the year in his first season of collegiate action.
The goal for Ried, meanwhile, was the first of his young career. The Schwendi, Germany, native has appeared in all 12 of the Warriors' contests to start the season, adding experience beyond his years on a solid Merrimack defensive unit comprised of seniors Alejandro Fuchs (Caracas, Venezuela) and Nelson Santos Da Graca (Gothenburg, Sweden).
In total, the Warriors outshot Assumption, 10-8, and owned a slim 2-1 edge in corner kicks. Both sides combined for 26 fouls, with Assumption's Max Roche receiving a yellow card in the 63rd minute.
Next up for the Warriors is a trip to conference foe Le Moyne on Wednesday, Oct. 17. First kick is scheduled for 4 p.m.
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