Ohio Wesleyan defeats Hamline, Hiram ties Messiah at OWU Fred Myers Invitational
Senior forward Travis Wall and senior forward Matt Bonfini contributed a goal and an assist apiece as fifth-ranked Ohio Wesleyan defeated Hamline in the second round of the Fred Myers Invitational on Saturday at Roy Rike Field.
In Saturday's first game, Hiram and No. 1-ranked Messiah battled to a 1-1 deadlock.
The Bishops made certain there would be no letdown after Friday's thriller against Messiah, tallying in the eighth minute of play when sophomore midfielder Matt Shadoan sent a corner kick into the box and junior defender Kit North headed it into the left side of the Piper goal.
Just over 2 minutes later, the Bishops stuck again when Bonfini ripped a shot that Piper keeper Spencer VonBehren stopped, only to see sophomore midfielder Jon Stegner jump on the rebound and put it into the net for a 2-0 lead.
Wall set up senior midfielder Dylan Stone on a score in the 21st minute, then scored off a rebound of a shot by sophomore midfielder Ian O'Keefe in the 31st minute.
Bonfini stretched the Bishop lead to 5-0 early in the second half, and senior forward Raphi Fratkin, senior forward Tyler Bryant, and senior midfielder Tevon Levien added second-half goals to wrap up the scoring.
Ohio Wesleyan outshot Hamline, 29-7. Sophomore Paul Hendricks was not tested in the Bishop goal during the first half, and senior Steve Gobel and sophomore Zach Khalifa combined for 5 saves during the second half. VonBehren stopped 2 shots during the first half and Zach Nelson had 3 saves during the second half for Hamline.
In Saturday's opener, Hiram took a 1-0 lead when Ryan Minick sent the ball to Ryan Kramerz, who scored from the left side in the 26th minute.
The defending national champion Falcons attacked the Terrier goal during the second half, outshooting Hiram by a margin of 14-4, and the pressure finally paid off when Jeremy Payne blasted a shot from 25 yards into the lower right corner to even the score at 1-1.
Messiah enjoyed the edge in play during most of the first half of the first overtime period, but the Terriers clawed back and put together some threats during the remainder of the period. Messiah outshot Hiram, 2-0, during the second extra session, but neither Falcon shot was on goal.
Messiah outshot Hiram, 28-8. Joe Rottinger stopped 7 shots for Hiram, while Jake Berry finished with 4 saves for Messiah.
The Hiram-Messiah tie split the tournament title between the 2 teams, each with a 1-0-1 record and each with a goal differential of +1 for the tournament.
The Fred Myers Invitational, sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Delaware County, has been one of the featured events on the Battling Bishops' schedule for 34 seasons. It honors Fred Myers, longtime soccer and lacrosse coach at Ohio Wesleyan. Ohio Wesleyan has won the tournament championship 26 times during the 34 years that the Myers Invitational has been contested.
