The Shippensburg University men’s soccer team settled for a point in a 1–1 draw with East Stroudsburg on Saturday evening in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division match at David See Field.
Shippensburg (3–3–2, 1–3–1 PSAC East) took the early advantage through senior Nathan Weldon (York, Pa./Susquehannock) in the 28th minute before East Stroudsburg (4–0–4, 1–0–4) leveled the game just before the half.
Junior Cody Willoughby (York, Pa./York Suburban) set a positive tone for the Raiders in the first 11 minutes with three big saves to open the match. East Stroudsburg found several pockets of space early on, but two diving stops to his right and one to his left kept the sides on equal terms.
The Raiders picked up momentum after the Willoughby stops, forcing two saves from Warrior goalkeeper Brayden Evans over the next 10 minutes.
Senior Avery Warrick (Enola, Pa./East Pennsboro) had one of the biggest moments of the half in the 23rd minute, preventing the first goal of the match with a goal-line save. The defender darted to the goal with Willoughby off his line, heading away a sure goal from Ignasi Cucurella.
Weldon gave the Raiders the advantage off of a corner delivered by junior Ashton Davies (Dillsburg, Pa./Northern York). Davies continued his run of dangerous set pieces, forcing Evans to make a grab at the goal line. Evans was forced to drop the ball with his momentum heading over the line, and Weldon cleaned up the mess for a 1–0 lead.
East Stroudsburg equalized in the 44th minute, cashing in on a messy corner. A low ball to the near post by Cucurella deflected off several players until finding the head of Pieter Neerhof who directed it into the back of the net.
Neither team found a breakthrough in the second half with just three combined shots on target. The Raiders had several opportunities to find a lead but failed to get shots on frame.
Willoughby finished with seven saves, five coming in the first half. Shippensburg earns a point after dropping its previous two matches and East Stroudsburg remains unbeaten on the season.
SU hits the road for its next three matches, starting with its final non-conference match with California (Pa.) on Wednesday night at 6 p.m.
