BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Freshman forward Hunter Ackerson netted a pair of goals and junior midfielder Ian Larimer added a goal and two assists as the Moravian College men's soccer team opened the 2015 season with a 6-0 shutout of Cairn University in non-conference action on the HUB Quad Tuesday afternoon.
"It was a great way to start the season coming out and winning 6-0," commented Head Coach Todd Ervin. "I think it is going to set us up well to get a few more wins as we go along the rest of the year."
Ackerson gave senior goalie Brian Boland all the offense he needed when he hit the left side of the net from 12 yards out on the right side on a touch pass from Lairmer in the 38th minute. Boland finished with four saves in his ninth career shutout, moving him into a tie for seventh place with Mike Grigorik.
"Brian is very reliable in net," stated Ervin. "I was a little disappointed that he had to do as much as he did today, which again wasn't a lot, but he did make some key saves to preserve the shutout. Having someone like Brian in net that is always solid is key for us as the year progresses."
The Hounds took a total of 16 shots in the first half with nine going on goal but just Ackerson's tally as the Highlander's keeper came up win eight saves in the first 45 minutes of action.
Moravian would need just 24 seconds in the second half to extend the lead to 2-0 as junior forward Saul Marcial took a pass from sophomore midfielder Connor Phillips and side stepped the goalie to score into an empty net from 10 yards out. Larimer found the net for the first time this season in the 53rd minute as he went in on a breakaway off another Phillips pass to score from 12 yards out on the left side.
Just over six minutes later, Larimer sent senior midfielder Brett Harder in on a breakaway with Harder burying the shot from just inside the 18-yard box for his first marker of the season.
The Hounds' final two goals came 37 seconds apart in the 76th minute. Ackerson took a soft pass from freshman forward Koshane Marshall after an attempted bicycle kick and drilled the ball into the upper right corner for his second goal of the match.
"Hunter really stepped up today," noted Ervin. "I'm not sure he was trying to score on the first one but the second one he really blasted home so that was nice to see. It was also nice to see that we can get goals from a bunch of different people and open up our opportunities to score."
Marshall followed up with a drive from the right side that was initially saved but freshman midfielder Chris Caso was there to drill the rebound into the open net to finish the scoring.
Moravian had a 29-8 advantage in shots in the contest, putting 19 of those shots on goal, and the Hounds also had a 6-1 edge in corner kicks.
The Greyhounds are scheduled to return to action on Saturday, September 5 when the head to Penn State-Berks for a non-conference match beginning at 5:00 p.m.
