The Hopkins Men's Soccer team pulled off an impressive upset Saturday night, defeating 21st-ranked Swarthmore by a final score of 2-0 on the legs of junior Taylor Woodrum and senior Sean Coleman.
The Jays led in corner kicks 5-4, an edge that was crucial as their first score came off of a Coleman serve from the corner. Woodrum capped a beautiful play early in the match, taking Coleman's lofting kick and heading it into the net in the sixth minute, giving Hopkins an early 1-0 lead they wouldn't let slip for the entire game.
The Hopkins stifling defense would help preserve the lead throughout the game. Helping their defensive cause was their efficient play: Swarthmore out-penalized the Jays 11-8, giving Hopkins more free kick opportunities and keeping possession away from the Garnet.
49 seconds into the second period, Coleman joined in on the scoring, rocketing an unassisted shot home from the top left of the box to double the Jays' lead.
Freshman goalie Nick Cerrone would outplay his Swarthmore counterpart David D'Annunzio, preserving the shutout for the entirety of the game by making two critical saves in the second half – his shutout was made even more impressive by the fact that the Jays were outshot by the Garnet 11-9. It was Hopkins' first triumph at Clothier field in over four years (their last road victory against Swarthmore being September 15th, 2007).
With the win the Blue Jays took a slim one-point lead over Dickinson and Muhlenberg in the Centennial Conference standings.
