Men’s soccer team routs Trine, 5-1, on Senior Day

OLIVET, Mich. – Five different players scored a goal, and the Olivet College men's soccer team defeated Trine (Ind.) University, 5-1, today at the Cutler Athletic Complex in Olivet. With the win, the Comets have a spot in the 2013 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Tournament. Official pairings will be announced at the conclusion of Tuesday's regular-season games.

Olivet took a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute on a goal by freshman Gregory Petty (Clinton Twp./Fraser). Senior Fred Smyser (Grand Rapids/Forest Hills Eastern) and junior Jon Puente (Kalamazoo/Galesburg Augusta) were each given an assist on the goal. The Comets made the score 2-0 at halftime behind a goal by Puente in the 30th minute. Junior Zach Schulz (Farmington) earned the assist.

Smyser scored a goal in the 56th minute after receiving a pass from junior Jared Wilson-Santos (Lansing/Everett). Olivet stretched its lead to 4-0 in the 78th minute. Schulz found the back of the net on an assist from freshman Dominic Mastromatteo (Grand Blanc).

The Thunder broke up the shutout in the 83rd minute when Kenny Rappuhn converted a penalty kick goal. The Comets capped their scoring with 3:48 left in the game. Senior Lelond Arnold (Okemos) scored his first collegiate goal. Puente passed the ball to Mastromatteo, who then slipped the ball to Arnold for the goal. 

For the game, Olivet out-shot Trine, 25-12, including a 10-4 advantage in shots-on-goal. Smyser had a team-high five shots, followed by Puente and Schulz with four each. Junior Alex Lang (West Bloomfield/Detroit Catholic Central) played the first half in net and made one save. Junior Matt Van Houten (Northville) was in net for the second half and made collected two saves.

"I am happy with how the lads played today," said Olivet Head Coach Dan Bulley. "Today was a complete team effort, as we were able to get a lot of guys into the game. It was also nice seeing our seniors go out with a win in their final home game. A special mention goes to Lelond for finding the back of the net for the first time in his career."

The Comets travel to play Adrian College in their MIAA regular season finale Tuesday night at 7 p.m.

"Our focus is now on Tuesday against Adrian," said Bulley. "We need to make sure we are playing well early next week, so we will be ready the conference tournament game."

NOTES: Olivet will be making its third straight trip to the MIAA Tournament. The Comets are the only MIAA school to advance to the MIAA Tournament championship game each of the last two seasons, playing Calvin in 2011 and Hope in 2012. Smyser is third all-time at Olivet with 21 career assists, and fourth with 65 points. With its win, the Comets have reached double figures in wins for sixth straight season.