Cornell’s men’s soccer team notched its first shutout of the season and first Midwest Conference win with a 2-0 decision over Ripon Saturday at home.
Cornell broke through against a Ripon squad (2-6-2 overall, 1-1-1 MWC) that hadn’t been scored upon in its first two conference contests.
Sophomore Aiden Lerch netted an unassisted goal at the 26-minute mark to put the Rams on the scoreboard. It was Lerch’s fourth goal of the fall.
George Archer added insurance in the 30th minute, converting his second penalty kick of the season to push Cornell ahead 2-0.
Goalkeeper Will Bickel collected three saves over the full 90 minutes.
The Rams held a commanding 23-8 advantage in total shots. Lerch, Zach Miller and Mardoche Ntonku had five shots apiece.
Earlier in the week, the Rams took a 3-2 win against Central College.
Cornell rallied for a pair of goals in the second half to take down visiting Central, 3-2, in nonconference men’s soccer action Wednesday.
The surging Rams won for the fourth time in their last five outings and climbed back over the .500 mark at 4-3-1 overall.
Cornell gained momentum early, receiving a penalty kick from sophomore George Archer in the 21st minute that put the Rams ahead 1-0.
The Dutch (1-6-1) evened the score late in the first half and then forged ahead 2-1 on a penalty kick at the 49-minute mark.
The Rams countered with two goals midway through the second half and regained the lead for good. Ntonku tied it up at 2-2 on an assist from Archer – his fifth of the season – in the 70th minute.
Not long after, Lerch delivered the winning goal with an unassisted strike at the 72-minute mark to complete the scoring. It was Lerch’s third goal of the fall.
Bickel earned the complete-game victory, recording six saves.
Miller accounted for three of Cornell’s 11 shots. The Dutch finished with 17 shot attempts