HOBOKEN, N.J. (September 10, 2008) – Junior Terrence Johnson recorded a hat trick as the No. 5 Stevens Institute of Technology men's soccer team recorded a huge, 3-0 win over in-state rival No. 19 The College of New Jersey on Wednesday night. Stevens earned the win in front of a raucous Duck Country crowd of more than 500 at the De Baun Athletic Complex and extended its home unbeaten streak to an amazing 62-straight games.
The Ducks controlled the ball and field position for the entire first half. Stevens had several solid chances while TCNJ could not get anything going as the Stevens defense of senior Jason Nachman, junior Chris Faustino, junior Al Lockhart, and senior Peter Montalvo quickly thwarted any rush the Lions could muster.
Johnson put the Ducks on the board in the 25th minute off an assist from Faustino. Faustino took the ball down the left sideline and crossed in front to Johnson who controlled it and was able to put it in to the left of TCNJ goalkeeper Eric Goldwaser (Wyckoff, N.J.).
At the break, Stevens (5-0) held the lead, a 4-1 shot advantage, and all the momentum.
Just 8:11 into the second half, Johnson struck again. The junior was wide open in the middle of the field after he controlled a back tap as he took it in from 45 yards out to beat Goldwaser 1-on-1.
At that point TCNJ turned up the pressure on the Stevens defense, but the Ducks would not budge. Sophomore keeper Zach Carr made a nice save diving to his left but was not challenged consistently. He finished with two saves, his second shutout of the season, and improved his personal record to 5-0.
Johnson put the finishing touch on the victory in the 77th minute when he headed in a perfect corner off the foot of senior Craig Moquin. The corner crossed the entire mouth of the goal and Johnson was on the back left post for the easy header. The score was his team-high fifth of the season.
The win was a big one for the Ducks as they had not beaten TCNJ since 2004. They lost 1-0 in 2005 and played to 0-0 draws the last two years.
The entire Stevens team entertained the big crowd on hand for the first Duck Country promotion of the 2008-09 school year. Many students came decked-out in body paint and festive apparel to show support for their Ducks.
The Stevens men's soccer team will play host to its second-consecutive ranked opponent on Saturday at 4 p.m. when they take on No. 23 Swarthmore College.
