The Emory University men's soccer team began its NCAA postseason Saturday afternoon with a first round victory over Maryville College, 3-1, in Hampden-Sydney, Virginia.
With the win, the Eagles advance to the second round for the third time in five seasons and will take on host school Hampden-Sydney College with a spot in the Round of 16 on the line at 3:00 PM on Sunday. The Tigers took down Otterbein, 3-0, in other first round action on Saturday.
Emory, now standing at 14-1-3, saw three different goal scorers in the win as the Eagles defeated the Scots for a second time this season. With the loss, Maryville ends its season at 9-4-6.
Fresh off the announcement of his UAA Offensive Player of the Year award, junior Lorenzo Avalos wasted no time living up to the billing as he put the Eagles on the board just 96 seconds following the opening whistle.
The 1-0 lead was short-lived however as Maryville found the equalizer in the 17th minute off a Brady Hammer strike. The score remained 1-1 going into the halftime break despite the Eagles holding a 10-4 lead in shots.
The second half proved to be in favor of Emory as the Eagles dominated possession with a 19-1 margin in total shots and recorded 10 shots on frame.
The heavy pressure immediately paved dividends as senior Owen Clark found the difference maker just 55 seconds into the second half. Clark's goal was his third of the season with freshman Josh Ali registering the assist.
Junior Logan Steren added an insurance goal in the 58th minute to provide the final tally, netting his fifth goal of the season with Ali and graduate student Jack Burgess collecting assists on the play.
At the end of 90 minutes, the Eagles owned a 29-4 edge in total shots and had a 13-4 lead in shots on goal. Emory earned 12 corner kicks compared to the Scots' one.
For fans looking to attend Sunday's Second Round action at Hellmuth-Gibson Field on the campus of Hampden-Sydney College, please use the ticket link found here: https://events.hometownticketing.com/boxoffice/hsc/L2VtYmVkL2V2ZW50LzY=
