LEXINGTON, Va. --- Sophomore forward Adrian Zimmerman (San Diego, Calif./Cathedral Catholic) scored twice to lead the No. 1 Washington and Lee men's soccer team past No. 8 Messiah in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
With the win, the Generals (18-1-2) advance to the National Semifinals for the first time in program history. The Falcons conclude their season at 19-2-2 overall with the loss.
Zimmerman's first goal put the Generals out in front in the 22nd minute. Junior midfielder Samuel Bass (Charlotte, N.C./Myers Park) fed Zimmerman from the top of the box. With his back to the goal, Zimmerman took one touch to his right, spun and fired with his left to the top-right corner of the frame.
The goal was Zimmerman's ninth during W&L's run in the NCAA Tournament, breaking the all-time Division III single-tournament goals and points records.
In the 50th minute, junior midfielder Michael Kutsanzira (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe/Putnam Science Academy (Conn.)) doubled the W&L lead. After a touch towards the box from senior midfielder Connor Wharton (Littleton, Colo./Colorado Academy) was headed away, Kutsanzira corralled the loose ball about 30 yards out. Kutsanzira turned towards goal, took one touch forward and unleashed a right-footed attempt into the top-left corner of the goal.
Zimmerman put W&L up by a 3-0 margin in the 79th minute on a penalty kick, after sophomore midfielder Grant McCarty (Dallas, Texas/Parish Episcopal) drew a foul inside the box. Graduate forward Jonathan Groothoff answered for the Falcons (19-2-2) on a penalty kick less than two minutes later to round out the scoring in the game.
Zimmerman's 10 goals and 20 points during the team's four-game NCAA Tournament run both now stand alone as all-time Division III records, and he has a team-high 16 goals this season. Kutsanzira took four shots in the game, all on target, and his 50th-minute score was his seventh of the year. Bass added three shots along with his eighth assist of the season.
Senior goalkeeper Michael Nyc (Kildeer, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson) (9-0-1) played all 90 minutes of the game and made four saves. The W&L defense also did its part to keep Messiah off the board, blocking four shots during the second half.
Groothoff was one of five Messiah players to tally a team-high two shots on the day. Senior midfielder Lucas Kokolios, junior defender Jake Lent-Koop, graduate midfielder Trevor Goodling and first-year forward Dylan Englehart each had one shot on goal. Junior goalkeeper Jared Pavlovich (19-2-2) also made four saves across the 90 minutes of play.
Total shots favored W&L in the game, 15-14. The Generals outshot the Falcons, 6-3, in the first half, while Messiah owned an 11-9 edge in the second. Messiah also earned seven corner kicks and conceded one.
The Generals will meet No. 6 Connecticut College in the National Semifinals on December 3 at UNC-Greensboro Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. The game is slated for a 5:00 pm start.