The GW men’s soccer team secured a spot in the Atlantic 10 Tournament Saturday with a 4-0 win over Richmond.
The Colonials (7-8-3, 6-3-2 A10) needed the victory to guarantee a bid in the conference tournament. Although they only won one of their first twelve games, they are now heading into the postseason on a six-game winning streak.
Sophomore Joe Siegel said he feels good about his team’s chances for success in the postseason.
“I am confident,” he said. “The games we were losing, we could have won. It’s matter of scoring goals, keeping others from scoring on us. I knew we could turn it around.”
At the beginning of the year, the Colonials had difficulty taking the lead first and had to play numerous catch-up games. But they dominated the Spiders from the opening minutes of their last regular season game.
Siegel scored two goals within the first eight minutes of play. Four minutes in, sophomore Jon Allen and junior Frank Ambrosio assisted on Siegel’s first goal. Three minutes later, freshman Wade Gerhardt passed from midfield to assist on Siegel’s second goal.
Thirty minutes into the second half, Siegel crossed the ball to Ambrosio, who nailed a shot past the Spiders’ goalkeeper. Nearly 10 minutes later, Gerhardt secured the win off of an assist from freshman Thomas Stuber.
Gerhardt said he was excited to score his first goal in such an important game.
“Obviously, scoring my first goal feels great,” he said. “Especially topping it off and securing the game. But even more, it feels good to win.”
In the opening round of the tourney, which will be held at the Mount Vernon Athletic Complex, the Colonials will face Rhode Island on Thursday at 1 p.m.
“I’m confident,” Siegel said. “We’re going in with six straight wins. Hopefully we can take the A-10 championship.”
