WALTHAM, Mass. - The Brandeis University men's soccer team scored two first-half goals a little more than five minutes apart and made the lead stand up with solid defense as the Judges defeated visiting Wentworth Institute of Technology, 2-0, on Gordon Field today.
Brandeis (2-0) opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Junior forward Patrick Metelus (Pernier, Haiti) notched his second goal of the season after dribbling from midfield down the left sideline. He moved into the box and chipped the ball over Wentworth senior goalkeeper Joe Simon (Pittsfield, Mass.), who had denied Metelus of the game's first goal just three minutes earlier.
The Judges doubled their lead in the 24th minute. Following a scrum in front of the net, sophomore back Kyle Gross (Medway, Mass.) intercepted a Wentworth clearing attempt. He took one dribble into the box and unleashed a hard shot that eluded Simon into the back of the net. It was the first goal of the season for Gross and the second of his career.
The Brandeis defense took over from there, allowing Wentworth (0-2-1) just six shots overall and one on goal for the contest. Wentworth's best scoring attempt came in the 85th minute, when Judge rookie Sean O'Hare (Southampton, Mass.) made a leaping catch off the foot of Leopard sophomore midfielder Austin Ludwig (E. Norriton, Pa.).
Simon finished with six saves for Wentworth in just over 69 minutes of work, while sophomore Brian Pearsall (Sanford, Maine) had one stop in 20 minutes. Brandeis junior Taylor Bracken (No. Andover, Mass.) was untested in the first half.
Brandeis is next in action on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. when they host Clark University, while Wentworth takes on Mass. Maritime Academy next Monday night at 7 p.m. in the Leopards' home opener.