Frederick, Md.– Eastern University Men's Soccer opened MAC Commonwealth play in front of a packed Homecoming crowd at Hood College. The Eagles (7-1-2, 1-0) made a second half goal from Eduardo Gutierrez enough in a hard-fought 1-0 win.

In a game that featured nearly a restart a minute in the second half, the Eagles found their goal on what looked to be the least dangerous opportunity at the hour mark. After a foul just inside the midfield stripe and right of the center circle, Gutierrez waited for the Eagles to get players in the box. The rookie defender playing his first match at left back hoisted a floating ball toward the penalty spot. Several players challenged for the ball, but no Eastern or Hood players made contact.

The traffic in front, however, forced the Hood goalkeeper to hold his position in the middle of the goal for a reaction save on a header from 12 yards out. When that did not happen, the serve from Gutierrez skipped into the upper corner for the only goal of the match.

Derek Buhrman created a great chance in the 80th minute after the Eagles were under pressure in their own zone. The junior forward carried the ball over 60 yards against pressure before spinning back to keep possession. After a quick negative ball, he received a return pass o n the left wing and beat his mark around the edge. Drew Johnson got to Buhrman's serve from the left edge, but his shot slipped over the crossbar for a goal kick.

The second half had restart chances for both teams. Throughout the frame, the Eastern back row and midfield showed good discipline in recovery after each restart. The host Blazers looked to find counter opportunities after restarts, but the Eastern defensive structure held, and the hosts had limited chances.

Diesel Fiore turned away a great chance on a header at the near-post on a corner kick in the 86th minute, and Dylan Daignault nodded away a header on the ensuing corner.

Fiore finished with seven stops to secure the shutout and earn the first MAC Commonwealth win in program history. The Blazers (6-3, 0-1) got eight saves from Danny Castillo.

"It was a tough environment to play in today," Head Coach Kevin Brenner said after the match. "We were not full strength or at our best, but we found a way to get a result."

The Eagles are back in action with a home test against Alvernia on Tuesday. They will host Stevenson University in a Homecoming test next Saturday.