TYLER, Texas, November 18, 2019 – Leon Sitz scored what proved to be the game-winning goal in the 23rd minute, but the Mustangs still added three more goals in the second half, as the No. 1-seeded Monroe College Mustangs men's soccer team battled for a 4-0 shutout victory over No. 12 Muskegon Community College on Monday in the opening match of the 2019 NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship at the Pat Hartley Complex on the campus of Tyler Junior College. The Mustangs start 1-0 in Pool A, while the Jayhawks fall to 0-1 to start pool play.
 
After some back-and-forth defense on both ends of the field to start the game, the Mustangs broke through at the 22:41 mark. Some tic-tac-toe in front of the net resulted in Leon Sitz firing it in from the right side of the box, putting the Mustangs up, 1-0. The defensive battle continued after that, eventually sending the game to the half with the same one-goal lead for the Mustangs.
 
The same defensive struggle continued until the final 13 minutes of Monday's contest. In the 78th minute, Daniel Haegler led Sitz down the right wing, where he was able to take it into the box and blast it past the keeper into the right side of the net to double the lead to 2-0.
 
Nearly 10 minutes later, the Mustangs were able to tack on another goal. Shawn Manley West was in close and shot it toward the crossbar, but it was stopped by the keeper. The rebound went right to Luca Erhardt, who controlled it and beat the keeper to the left to make it a 3-0 game at the 86:35 mark.
 
With goal differential an important tiebreaker in pool play, the Mustangs had no reason to stop themselves from adding one more goal in the final seconds of Monday's tournament opener. Erhardt played it deep into the offensive zone and sent a beauty of a cross to the left side of the box, finding Markus Maurer who one-timed it past the diving goalie and into the net with just six seconds left on the clock to give the Mustangs the 4-0 victory.
 
Mustang goalkeeper Victor Camps was not too busy in Monday's game, but took care of business when he had to, making two saves without allowing a goal to pick up the win and improve to 8-0 on the season. Alex Visscher took the loss for the Jayhawks after allowing four goals and making three saves.
 
With a 1-0 start in pool play, the Mustangs are now one win away from clinching a spot in the NJCAA Div. I Men's Soccer Championship semifinals. Pool play continues tomorrow and will see No. 12 Muskegon challenge No. 8 Iowa Western Community College (No. 2 in final NJCAA Rankings). Monroe will then take on Iowa Western on Wednesday, Nov. 20, at 11 a.m. EST to close out play in Pool A.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 31 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 12 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).