Box Score CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – The newly-minted No. 1 team in the country, Franklin & Marshall, pulled out a narrow 1-0 victory over DeSales in non-conference men's soccer competition on Wednesday afternoon.
The Diplomats remained unbeaten on the year at 11-0, while the Bulldogs fell to 5-7.
F&M's leading scorer Chase TenBrook provided goalkeeper Trevor Britton and the Diplomats all the offense F&M would need on the contest. In the 37th minute of a 0-0 game, a Jeremy Levine freekick was one-touched by Matthew Regueiro over to TenBrook, who sent an attempt over the head of DeSales' goalkeeper. Both Regueiro and Levine were credited with an assist on the play.
With the score, TenBrook now has seven goals on the season, a mark that leads the Diplomats and places second in the Centennial Conference (CC).
The Bulldogs came out firing in the opening minutes of the first with a trio of golden opportunities and peppering a number of shots at Britton in the early going. F&M's goalkeeper weathered the storm, turning back a point-blank attempt off his chest in the early minutes.
DeSales held a 5-3 edge in shots in the opening frame, however the Diplomats outshot the Bulldogs 9-3 in the second. Corners were limited on both ends with DeSales having a 3-2 advantage.
Britton (11-0) picked up his seventh shutout of the season by recording four saves, while his counterpart Dan Sulpizio (4-4) was charged with the loss despite registering six stops.
TenBrook paced the offense with four shots, followed by two each from Jason Tonelli and Ugo Okolie.
F&M returns to the pitch on Saturday, hosting McDaniel at Tylus Field for a 3:00 p.m. competition.
