Montclair State University Athletics

Montclair, NJ. – The No. 5 Montclair State University men's soccer team blanked Elmira College 2-0 in the First Round of the Division III Tournament on Saturday night.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Red Hawks (18-2-1) made their first of the game count, as a strong individual from AMER LUKOVIC made it 1-0. The junior received a long through ball that glanced off a defender. He split two defenders before depositing a low shot into the goal for his 29th marker of the year.
• SHANE KEENAN made a stop in the 17th minute to keep it 1-0, and the Red Hawks nearly added to the lead in the 29th. IAN CHESNEY had his header off a free kick parried into the crossbar before ANDRE SHELTON's rebound was blocked.
• Both sides had chances early in the second half, with REED KARSEN's attempt in the 55th minute getting sent fired. Keenan kept it at 1-0 in the 68th minute, with Elmira trying to turn up the pressure.
• Lukovic drew a foul in the box and stepped up to the penalty spot in the 76th minute. The junior fooled the keeper and buried the chance, doubling the advantage. The Red Hawk defense buckled down and didn't surrender a shot over the final 23 minutes.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Lukovic surpassed Lucas Terci's mark of 28 for the school-record for goals in a season with his 29th and 30th of the year.
• Keenan made five saves in the clean-sheet victory.
• The Red Hawks improved to 27-22-1 in the NCAA Tournament and have now won at least one game in the NCAA Tournament the last four times they've been in.

FROM THE FIELD
"It was a committed effort from Elmira and they made things hard for us. Defensively we were solid and it just took some time for us to break them down and find the back of the net. It was a full team effort and now we'll do our best to rest up and prepare for another tough game Sunday night." -  Head Coach Todd Tumelty.

UP NEXT
The Red Hawks will face the winner of Christopher Newport and Manhattanville in the Second Round on Sunday at 7 pm.