By Steven M. Glassman
Director of Sports Information
September 11, 2021
JENKINTOWN, PA—Manor College (1-0-0) freshman midfielder Eddie Fortescue (Blue, PA/Wissahickon) registered a hat trick and an assist as the Blue Jays defeated Division II Penn State-Lehigh Valley (0-2-0), 6-1, in its season and home opener. The Blue Jays were making its United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) debut.
Both teams and officials observed a moment of silence on the 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001 before the start of the match.
Lehigh Valley scored first when sophomore John Hahalis' head shot went to sophomore Cadeyn Muthard inside the 18-yard line. Muthard's shot went into the left-hand corner of the net (1:00). Manor tied the game when Fortescue's throw-in deflected off of a Nitanny Lion defender to freshman midfielder/defenseman Maximo Chavez (Norristown, PA/Norristown Area) around the six. Chavez' shot went into the left-hand corner of the net (2:00). The Blue Jays took the lead for good when freshman midfielder/forward Rolph Miot's (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) corner kick went to Fortescue around the six. Fortescure's head shot went into the right-hand corner of the net for his for his second goal of the match (23:00). Sophomore midfield/forward Jonathan Ventura-Garcia's (Philadelphia, PA/Esperanza Academy) long chip shot from between 18 and midfield went to Fortescure around the six. Fortescue's head shot went into the left side of the net (25:00). Sophomore midfielder John Levy's (Philadelphia, PA/Franklin Towne Charter) corner kick went into the left-hand corner of the net (36:00). Sophomore forward Rickelmy Innocent's (Philadelphia, PA/Samuel Fels) shot off of a Lehigh Valley turnover from outside the 18 went into the left side of the net (37:00) to finish off the first-half scoring. Manor led 5-1 at halftime. The Blue Jays and the Nittany Lions had 11 shots overall, including eight apiece in the first half.
Following Manor foul inside the 18, Lehigh Valley sophomore Jerod Younes' penalty kick went off of Ventura-Garcia. Daniel Kobrin's shot off of Younes' rebound was also saved by goalkeeper Ventura-Garcia. The Blue Jays scored the only second-half goal. Freshman midfielder Juff Exilus' (Maple Shade, NJ/Columbia) pass following a Nittany Lion turnover went to Fortescue around the 18 and his shot went into middle of the net for his first collegiate hat trick (65:00). Altogether, the Blue Jays scored six unanswered goals. Lehigh Valley outshot Manor in the second half, 14 (12 on goal) to eight (seven on goal). The Nittany Lions outshot the Blue Jays, 25-19, for the match.
Manor College Director of Athletics and Men's Soccer Head Coach John Dempster on the match versus Lehigh Valley: "Our match against Penn State-Lehigh Valley was a typical one for us, it was fought by both teams. The visiting squad came to play, despite the final score, they played tough and never took their foot off the brake. As for my guys, we capitalized on our set plays and that basically put the game away for us. From our defense to our forwards they all played well, especially Eddie Fortescue. He controlled the air game and kept us afloat."
Dempster on its USCAA debut after spending the previous 13 seasons in the NJCAA: "Our first official game as members of the USCAA was everything I'd hoped it would be. It was intense and ended with a Manor victory."
Dempster on its first match overall since October 12, 2019 and home match since October 5, 2019: "The wait was long overdue and the guys were ready to show the conference that we are back and ready to compete."
Series Record: The Blue Jays lead the season series, 4-0-0 (2-0-0 at home).
Manor versus the PSUAC: Manor is 7-0-1 overall (2-0-0 at home) versus the Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference (since 2008).
Next Match: Manor hosts USCAA Division II Berkeley College (New Jersey) (4-0-0) in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 15. This is first match-up between the two schools.
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Instagram: manor_athletics.
Twitter: @manorbluejays.
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