PATCHOGUE, N.Y. (Sept. 23, 2026) – The USMMA men's soccer team scored twice in a span of just over five minutes in the second half and received a strong defensive effort to earn a 2-0 road victory over reigning Skyline Conference champion St. Joseph's-Long Island on Wednesday night at Danzi Stadium. The Mariners improved to 3-2-4 overall (2-0-1 Skyline), while the Golden Eagles fell to 0-4-2 (0-2-1 Skyline).
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St. Joseph's generated the first quality opportunity of the night in the eighth minute, but senior
Ethan Howell (Alexandria, Va.) turned aside Jack Pulisic's attempt to keep the game scoreless. Junior
Robert Derwin (East Meadow, N.Y.) answered with an opportunity for Merchant Marine just over a minute later, but Golden Eagles goalkeeper Dean Burchard made the save.
Howell made two more stops in the opening half, denying Devin Seara in the 26th minute and Pulisic in the 35th. Merchant Marine also put attempts from sophomore
Ethan Schuette (Gig Harbor, Wash.) and senior
Patrick Novotny (Fort Worth, Texas) on target as the teams went into halftime locked at 0-0.
The Golden Eagles nearly broke through in the 59th minute when Pulisic sent an attempt off the crossbar, but Merchant Marine responded less than two minutes later. Senior
Andrew Jung (Fairfax, Va.) set up Derwin, who found the back of the net in the 61st minute to give the Mariners a 1-0 advantage.
Merchant Marine doubled its lead in the 66th minute following a corner kick. Sophomore
Charlie Safe (Boise, Idaho) provided the assist to junior
Cade Dailey (Orange Park, Fla.), who scored his first career goal to make it 2-0.
The Mariners' defense helped make the two-goal advantage stand. Junior
Colin Robertson (Milford, Mich.) cleared a pair of St. Joseph's opportunities off the goal line, while freshman
Jackson Justice (Winchester, Va.) consistently won aerial challenges on the back line. Howell also came up with back-to-back saves on Liam McDermott in the 67th minute as the Golden Eagles looked to get back into the game.
Merchant Marine had an opportunity to add to its advantage late in the contest, but Burchard stopped a penalty kick from junior
Cal Lutz (South Pasadena, Calif.) in the 85th minute before making another save on Lutz in the 88th.
St. Joseph's finished with a 13-11 edge in total shots, while Merchant Marine held a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal and a 6-4 edge in corner kicks. Derwin led the Mariners with four shots and two attempts on target.
Howell finished with five saves to earn the clean sheet for Merchant Marine, while Burchard made five saves for the Golden Eagles.
The Mariners return home on Friday, Sept. 25, when they host Skyline Conference opponent St. Joseph's-Brooklyn at 5 p.m. at Bartoszek Field. The contest will be the first game of a men's and women's soccer doubleheader as part of USMMA's Homecoming Weekend.
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