Trine Pitches Shutout Over Manchester

September 14, 2013

ANGOLA, Ind. - The Trine University men’s soccer team (2-2-1) would score early in the match and never look back as they rolled to a 3-0 rout over Manchester College (1-4-1) in the second day of the annual Ketner Classic. The Thunder outshot the Spartans 18-to-4 and did a superb job of maintaining possession on the Spartans side of the field. Three different Thunder players scored on the day, and junior captain Karston Shephard (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield) had a great day setting up his Trine teammates on his way to two assists.

The Thunder picked up their first goal on a nice long pass that setup an easy 1-on-1 opportunity for freshman Bill Wilson (Mason, Mich./Mason) at 10:42 in the first half. Trine kept consistently picking up corners, with a 6-0 advantage in the first half and it would pay off late in the period.

Shephard delivered a great corner kick that deflected off senior captain Samuel Seibolt (Olathe, Kan./DeSoto) and right into the legs of sophomore Jacob Nantz (Galesburg, Mich./Galesburg Augusta), who finished the job from point blank range on Manchester goaltender Craig Thacker at 29:47 in the first half. At the end of the half, Trine had a comfortable 2-0 lead.

In the second half, things got chippy late as Manchester could not break the tenacious Thunder defense. A Manchester foul in the box would set up the Thunder for a penalty kick opportunity, which senior Ryan Schreiner (Bryan, Ohio/Bryan) delivered to the back right of the net for his first career goal. With a loss inevitable, both sides began mass substituting and Manchester picking up one of the three yellow cards on the day with seconds to spare before the end of the game.

Thunder senior goalkeeper Chris Stewart (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester) had an easy day at the office, saving both shots on net by the Spartans.

Trine now enters conference play when they host on Alma at 4 p.m. on Sept. 17.