Goals by Mike Worden, Nick Kapus and Cristobal Soto, along with the stellar goalkeeping of Matt Makowski, lifted the American University men's soccer team to a hard-fought 3-1 victory over defending Patriot League champion Bucknell on Saturday afternoon at Reeves Field.

Bucknell (2-5, 0-1 Patriot League) appeared to control the tempo of the match over the opening few minutes, which resulted in four early shots at Makowski.  American (4-3, 1-0 PL) quickly gained its composure and had its best early opportunity in the 17th minute when Worden chested a ball in the box. He turned and ripped a shot, although it was right at Bucknell goalkeeper Tommy Caso.

Nine minutes later, Jack Scott controlled a loose ball in the box and directed it to Worden, who this time converted his chance, striking a shot over Caso's head to put American up 1-0.

American knocked home its second goal in the 38th minute with a series that once again began with Scott. The junior carried the ball from the left wing into the middle before sliding a pass across to Kapus, who fired a shot to Caso's right for his first goal of the season. The Eagles maintained their lead in the closing minutes of the half and went into intermission up 2-0.

The Eagles took a 3-0 advantage early in the second half when Soto dribbled the ball across the field and smashed a shot from 35 yards out that found the top right corner of the net. For the freshman defender, it was his first-career score.

Facing a 3-0 deficit, the Bison continued to fight hard, and eventually got on the scoreboard in the 58th minute. Working on the right side, Bucknell's Brendan Klebanoff fired a shot from 25 yards out that beat Makowski, which trimmed AU's lead to 3-1.

With the momentum of the match appearing to be swinging in Bucknell's favor, the Bison nearly made the score 3-2 when Ross Liberati's header struck the crossbar. Fortunately for the Eagles, they were able to clear the zone and keep their two-goal advantage.

Bucknell had its final legitimate scoring threat in the 78th minute when Josh Plump controlled the ball on the right side and rocketed a shot from 10 yards out. Makowski, however, was in perfect position to make a tremendous kick save and preserve the 3-1 margin.  

"I don't think it was our best game soccer-wise, but winning conference games is huge," remarked Head Coach Todd West. "It was a rematch of the championship game from last year so we expected it to be a little bit emotional and physical. I'm pleased that we were able to come out with the result today."

Makowski was solid in net for the Eagles, registering eight saves as he was tested throughout the match. The Bison earned 14 corner kicks in the 90 minutes of play, although Makowski and the rest of the defensive unit were able to hold the Bison in check allowing only the lone score.

On the offensive end, in addition to the goals by Worden, Kapus and Soto, Scott earned assists on each of the first two scores. Jamie Davin led the Eagles with four shots. In total, the Eagles recorded 14 shots in the match, five of which were on goal. By comparison, Bucknell registered 24 total shots, including nine on target.

Next up for American is a non-conference matchup at Virginia Tech on Tuesday, September 28 at 7:00 p.m.

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