Black Knights Shut Down Merchant Marine, 4-0

Saturday, October 3

West Point, NY

Army West Point

1-0-0, 0-0-0

Merchant Marine Academy

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Merchant Marine

Army West Point

Black Knights Shut Down Merchant Marine, 4-0

October 03, 2020 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. - The Army West Point men's soccer team came out victorious once again against the Merchant Marine Academy, this time by a 4-0 score at Malek Stadium.

The Black Knights shut down the Mariners in back-to-back weekends. Oscar Pereira had a standout game with five points, while Jake Burgess finished with two.

Army and Merchant Marine were knotted at 0-0 until Periera put home a penalty kick in the 36th minute to spark the scoring run for the Cadets. Jacob Suppiah recorded his second-straight shutout against Merchant Marine.

The Cadets out shot the Mariners 25-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Pereira netted the first goal of the night off a penalty kick in the 36th minute.
Nine minutes later, he assisted Burgess who soared one into the top right of the goal past the Mariners' keeper.
Pereira's performance did not stop there as he drilled one up the middle in the 56th minute to put the Black Knights on top 3-0.
Army went up 4-0 after an own goal by Merchant Marine.

HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES

Army finished the game with an impressive 25-0 advantage in shots.
The Black Knights led in corner kicks (14-2).
The Cadets improve to 19-1-1 against USMMA in the all-time series.
It was the second shutout opposite the Mariners in two weeks.

INSIDER REACTIONS

From Periera, "Last week we were trying to break them through the middle, but this week we changed the speed of play, were more direct and were more confident in our decisions. There was a clear distinction between the games and tonight we executed."
From Luke Doyle, "Going into this game, we were prepared for their unique style of play and how to break it. We practiced all week on how to break that block and going foward and being more clinical."
From Eric Whiteman, "Merchant Marine came out hot, pressing us from the start, but I think our midfielders and backs as a whole were able to move the ball really well. We were able to move the ball around them and tire them quickly."
From Christian Takaki, "The penalty kick really boosted our confidence. After that, we started putting balls on target and we started taking advantage of our opportunities. We took advantage of the wet surface, kept the balls low and put some balls in the back of the net."
From head coach Russell Payne, "The last two games, there was a tentative nature in the first 20 minutes. We were constantly in the final third, but weren't getting the shots on goal. Getting that first goal, the penalty kick, helped settle the nerves a little bit."