#2 Franklin Pierce
Blanks Le Moyne, 3-0
Ravens unbeaten through first 12 matches
for first time since 1995

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (October 3, 2006) – Franklin Pierce, ranked No. 2 in this week’s National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas Division II poll, extended its unbeaten streak to 12 with a 3-0 victory over Le Moyne College, ranked seventh in the New England region, in Northeast-10 Conference men’s soccer action at the Thomas J. Niland Athletic Complex this afternoon. The match was televised live on Time Warner Sports in Central and Northern New York.

            In addition to its first 12-match unbeaten run to start the season since 1995, Franklin Pierce has not dropped a Northeast-10 match since a 1-0 setback at Southern New Hampshire University on September 28, 2005 – a run of 16 matches (14-0-2). Grad student David Clifton (London, England) netted two goals for the second-straight match, while sophomore Frantz Francois (Saint-Marc, Haiti/Palm Beach Lakes (Fla.)) dished two assists for the Ravens.           

Junior All-America goalkeeper James Thorpe (East Longmeadow, Mass./Bridgton Academy) made four saves (three first half) to preserve his Conference-leading eighth shutout of the season (33^rd career). The Ravens have not conceded a goal over their last three matches, posting a scoreless streak of 334:30.

            Franklin Pierce took just 51-seconds to take the lead as senior back Jason Grier (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) took a shot that deflected off a Le Moyne defender and past freshman goalkeeper Steve White (Cortland, N.Y./Cortland).

            Clifton scored twice in a four-minute span midway through the second half to break the match open, both set up by Francois. Clifton took a pass from Francois before slotting the ball into the lower right corner of the net at 64:39. Francois found Clifton again with a cross from the right side to round out the scoring at 68:29.

            White finished with five saves for the Dolphins, who were out-shot 16-10 for the match (8-4 on target), including 11-5 over the final 45-minutes.

            Franklin Pierce (11-0-1, 7-0-1 NE-10) returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Saint Anselm College at 7 p.m. Le Moyne (8-4-1, 6-3-1 NE-10) hosts UMass Lowell on Saturday at 1 p.m.

MATCH STATISTICS & PLAY-BY-PLAY