The game fell between two very important games, the weather alternated between dousing rain and blinding sunlight, and the Eastern Men's Soccer staff committed to limiting the minutes of several regulars through the day. Even with all the oddities of the day, Eastern successfully defended their home turf against a skillful Penn State-Abington squad with a 3-1 win. Phil Mantua scored a pair of goals and added an assist.

The Eagles (11-4-1, 5-1 Freedom) clearly had cause to look forward to Saturday's Freedom Conference affair at FDU-Florham. A win in Madison would give Eastern the top seed in the Freedom Conference Tournament and would allow the Eagles to play on home turf in the final should they qualify. After today, Eastern is 8-0-1 on Olson Field.

With the impending league match as a back-drop, the Eastern team still had a great desire to complete their home slate without a blemish. The group that played struggled to find space early as the Lions pressed their back line high and condensed the midfield. The Eagles finally solved the puzzle in the 20th minute as Mantua weighted a ball into Sean Bonner's feet in a seam. Bonner took a touch and buried his second to give the Eagles a 1-0 edge.

Shortly after the goal, the drizzle increased to a downpour and the game lost whatever rhythm it seemed to be developing. Both teams finished the half with three shots. 

Almost as soon as the teams entered the locker rooms, the rain stopped and the sun came out. The Eastern team returned to the field for the second half with renewed energy and positive play.

Dan Shields created Eastern's second goal in the 48th minute. Eastern's winger battled through traffic on the left side and curled a hard cross to Mantua on the back post. Mantua used the wet turf to his advantage with a stylish sliding finish. Ten minutes later, Mantua put the Eagles up 3-0 after Brandon Reichart split the PSU-Abington back line with a lofted pass.

The Lions (9-7-1), however, refused to go quietly. Elsion Pajollari scored his 11th of the year for the guests off a feed from Alix Edwards in the 79th minute. Seconds later, Pajollari nearly cut the deficit to one, but Matt Lieg was able to push the striker's 15 yard shot over the crossbar.

"We wanted to get some rest for guys," Eastern Head Coach Mark Wagner said after the game, "but we also need to prepare for a battle on Saturday." 

Regardless of the outcome of Saturday's contest, the Eagles will host a Freedom Conference semifinal on Tuesday at 2:00 pm. The opponent will be determined following the conclusion of league action on Saturday.

Box Score