It took Blake Cooper a little over three minutes in Saturday's contest to find the back of the net and give the Penn State Behrend men's soccer team a 1-0 victory over Goucher in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Men's Soccer Semifinals hosted by Alvernia.
Cooper took a pass from Chris Profaca to secure an early lead for the Lions and the eventual victory. Behrend's defense held strong after a second half attack from Goucher that included 11 shots. The Lions' backline registered their 12th shutout of the season, while goalkeeper Sam York made five saves to record his eighth scoreless match. Cooper led the Lions with four shots, three of which were on goal. The Gophers were led in shots by Flynn McNally and Michael Adekanmbi, who each tallied two shots.
For the game, Goucher outshot the Lions, 17-9. In net for the Gophers, Ale Sternini finished with three saves.
The Lions advance to tomorrow's championships match to take on the hosts No. 1 Alvernia University, who won in overtime against No. 4 FDU-Florham earlier in the day. Kickoff for Sunday is scheduled for noon.