Taylor collects at least a point for the second-straight match

BOXSCORE

RINDGE, N.H. (October 20, 2010) – The No. 3-nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University men’s soccer team ran its unbeaten streak to 10-straight matches Wednesday night with a 1-0 win over Saint Anselm at Sodexo Field in Rindge. The Ravens improved to 11-1-1 overall and 9-0-1 in Northeast-10 action, while Saint Anselm fell to 4-11-1 and 3-7-1 in league play.

The match was mostly a defensive battle between both teams as neither side could generate many top-notch scoring opportunities. Franklin Pierce’s backs turned in a strong effort and held Saint Anselm to just eight shots, including only three on goal.

Junior goalkeeper Vinny Papageorgiou (Wilmington, Mass.) made three saves to earn the shutout win and run his record to 11-1-1 on the season. He has posted eight shutout victories this season, including one in each of the last two matches.

Despite the strong defensive play, Franklin Pierce graduate forward Shaun Taylor (Isle of White, England) provided the biggest spark of the contest with just under 14 minutes remaining in regulation when he sent a blast to the lower left corner of the net for the game-winning tally.

Taylor scored the goal from in front of the net off a short crossing pass from sophomore midfielder Amory Houghton (Cape Elizabeth, Maine), who out-worked a pair of Saint Anselm defenders to track down the loose ball before slipping the pass for the game-winning shot.

For Taylor, it was his second goal of the season and his second-straight match earning at least one point. Houghton was given an assist on the play, which was his third of the campaign.

Just like they had done in the early stages of the match, Franklin Pierce’s backs stood tall in the closing minutes and made the goal stand up by yielding just one more shot the rest of the way.

Neither team scored in the opening 45 minutes, as the Ravens held a 7-3 advantage in shots.

Franklin Pierce returns to action Saturday when the Ravens travel to face Assumption at 7 p.m. in Worcester, Mass.

For more information on Franklin Pierce men’s soccer, please visit the team’s page at athletics.franklinpierce.edu(.) To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceAthletics).