Offense Shines in Bears 4-0 Preseason Victory over Oglethorpe

Box Score

MACON, Ga. – Four different players found the back of the net as the Mercer men’s soccer team downed Oglethorpe 4-0 in preseason action on Monday evening at Bear Field.

The Bears outshot the Stormy Petrels 16-7, including a 7-2 edge in shots on goal.

Mercer came out aggressive on the offensive end and applied heavy pressure on the Oglethorpe defense in the first half.

The results were immediate as the Bears scored two early goals within a 10 minute span. Senior Ian Cameron got the Orange and Black on the board in the 14^th minute when he collected a deflected ball in the box and buried a shot in the lower right-hand corner. Freshman Brady O’Brien made the score 2-0 Mercer when he fired in a hard shot from the left side in the 23^rd minute of play.      

The Bears kept the pressure on as play moved into the second half and came away with two more goals to show for it. A handball in the box awarded junior Philip Thoren a penalty kick which he put past Oglethorpe goalkeeper Frank Peterson to make the score 3-0.

Freshman Joshua Ball capped the scoring in the contest when he received a beautiful through ball by freshman defender Cole Mitchell that he easily put away in the 70^th minute to make the score 4-0 Mercer.

Redshirt sophomore Daniel VanValkinburgh proved to be the beneficiary of the Bears offensive onslaught, making two saves to earn the shutout victory.

Mercer will wrap up its preseason schedule when it travels to Atlanta to take on Clayton State on Saturday evening. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.