A breakout performance from Michael Bryant '18 guided the men's soccer team to a 6-1 drubbing of Utica College in EC's Empire 8 Conference opener on Saturday at Campus Field. One of the top scorers in all of NCAA Division III a year ago, Bryant tallied twice against the Pioneers and assisted on two others.
The Portola Hills, California, product earned assists on each of Elmira's first two goals, both scored by Donte Donegal'18. In the sixth minute and 17th minutes, Bryant set up Donegal with a pair of one-on-one chances with the Utica keeper off of headers, both of which were successfully converted. He then scored his first goal of the afternoon in the 34th minute with a header off of a corner entry from Tony Barraco '18, putting the Purple and Gold up 4-0 at the half. The busy afternoon concluded in the 78th minute, as Bryant slipped past a bevy of Utica defenders and buried a shot to the far right corner.
Bryant's six-point effort equaled his single-game career high, as did his two assists. On the season, the 6-foot 2-inch forward has accumulated eight points off of three goals and two assists. His 1.60 points per game lead the Empire 8 Conference through EC's first five contests.
The Elmira men's soccer team will hit the road for a non-conference contest against Vassar College on Tuesday, September 20th, at 4:00 p.m.
