Men’s Soccer Falls to Gannon

BY Nicholas Saccaro
Staff Writer

Last Friday, Oct. 30, the ESU men’s soccer team celebrated Senior Night as they took on Gannon University at ESU’s Eiler-Martin stadium.

The men were fighting for the final spot in the postseason Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament.

Attendees focused on celebrating the careers of seniors Casey Choffy and Jonathan Stuppe, who were playing their last games for ESU that Friday afternoon.

Choffy scored 10 goals this season, ranking third in the PSAC. Choffy was the first player to score ten or more goals at ESU since 2008.

Choffy has 12 career goals for ESU and is also a four-year letterman.

Jonathan Stuppe had 10 career goals and five assists for ESU.

Stuppe also started all 34 games over the last two years. In 2014, he had four goals and two assists over 18 games, which was a team-high for the men.

The top six teams in the conference make it to the post-season, and ESU sits in seventh place.

Lock Haven University held the final bid into the PSAC tournament, but the men were looking to change that with a win over Gannon, hoping to ultimately steal the final bid away from Lock Haven.

Unfortunately, the men fell to Gannon in a 1-0 overtime thriller and failed to gain the final PSAC tournament spot.

Gannon’s defense was nearly unstoppable, allowing only four shots and one shot on goal for the entire game. Gannon out-shot ESU 19-4 with 12 shots on goal.

ESU’s freshman goalkeeper Will Boerema had the game of his life.

Achieving a career high of 11 saves, Boerema was fighting to keep the Warriors alive and desperately trying to save them from a heartbreaking loss.

The game ventured into overtime, and that was when Gannon’s Nick Stephenson assisted teammate Ted Martin to score the only goal of the game. Gannon’s goal delivered the ultimate blow to ESU and ended the Warriors’ season.

The Warriors finished their season in eighth place with a record of 7-8-1 overall and 4-6-1 in the PSAC.
This season is an improvement from their 2014 season where the Warriors went 5-12-1 overall and 3-8 in the PSAC finishing in eleventh place.

The future is looking bright for the ESU men’s soccer team. Rising stars like Boerema hope to help overcome the loss of graduating starters Choffy and Stuppe.

You can expect to see the Warriors making PSAC tournament appearances within the next few years, and with any luck, they will take home a PSAC title in the future.

Email Nicholas at: nsaccaro@live.esu.edu