ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. - A goal in the opening seconds was enough to propel Elizabethtown past Juniata as the Eagles fell 1-0 on Saturday afternoon. 

The Blue Jays had possession to start the match and swiftly launched an offensive, as an Elizabethtown player dribbled the ball to within thirty yards of the goal before initiating a couple of quick passes to breach the Juniata defense. A heavy touch from Elizabethtown went past goalkeeper Axel Grater and was pounced on by a Blue Jay player from six yards out to open the scoring. 

Juniata responded to the early deficit with four shots in the next ten minutes, including an Amo Mashigo free kick from 20 yards out that forced a diving save in the seventh minute and a Blake Cassel shot taken from ten yards out following a poor clearance from the Elizabethtown keeper. 

The Blue Jays dominated the rest of the first half, as they generated seven shots from the tenth minute onward that forced three saves from Grater, including a routine stop of a free kick header in the 13th minute, a dive left on a shot from 25 yards out in the 24th minute, and a block on a shot from 18 yards out in the 38th minute.  

Elizabethtown controlled the early stages of the second half, as they shot three times in the first ten minutes forcing a save from in the 48th minute on a ball headed into the ground. 

Leveling the scoreline became a taller task after Ty Mazzarella received a straight red card in the 61st minute for dragging an Elizabethtown player to the ground while representing the last defender near the 18-yard box. The free kick resulting from the foul was blocked, and it was the last shot from Elizabethtown in the match. 

The lone shot in the second half for Juniata came in the 74th minute as Emmet Young forced a diving save from a narrow-angle.  

Elizabethtown outshot Juniata by 12 shots to six and generated 11 corners to Juniata's one corner in the 8th minute.  

Grater tallied four saves in his fourth start of 2022.  

Three Eagles put shots on target including Young, Cassel, and Mashigo.  

Juniata returns to action Tuesday, October 4, at 7:00 pm, as the Eagles host Penn College. Juniata holds a 4-1-1 record against the Wildcats and won the 2021 contest in a 1-0 victory in Williamsport.