Bielanski, Mustangs get past Benedictine-Mesa

It wasn't always pretty, but The Master's University men's soccer team earned a 2-0 win over Benedictine-Mesa on Friday afternoon at the Embry-Riddle Tournament in Prescott, Ariz., all the same.
 
The victory ran the Mustangs' season-opening win streak to five games.
 
"We worked out a victory with some gritty play," said TMU head coach Jim Rickard.  "It wasn't one of our better performances but we kept plugging away."
 
The Mustangs had a few breakaways and other scoring opportunities in the opening half but couldn't capitalize.
 
"The heat and elevation (just over a mile high) took a toll on us it seemed," said Rickard.  "Also, it was Benedictine's first game so they came out very hard and put us under pressure early."
 
Benedictine-Mesa had just as many chances during the opening 45 minutes, but TMU keeper Price Anderson was up to the task, turning away five Redhawk shots in another sterling outing.
 
In just under 200 minutes of play between the pipes, the freshman goalie has yet to allow a goal and has notched 16 saves.
 
He was replaced in the second half by sophomore transfer Matheus Taraszkiewicz and that's when the Mustangs got on the board.
 
For all the chances to score in the first half, the Mustangs got some unexpected help from the Redhawks in the opening minutes of the second period and it proved to be decisive.
 
It came from the Benedictine defense.  In an effort to clear a Mustang cross, a Redhawk defender inadvertently headed the ball into his own net at the 49:34 mark.
 
The 1-0 advantage stood up for nearly 40 minutes until Dylan Bielanski provided much-needed insurance. 
 
With under four minutes remaining (86:24), the junior forward made good on a pass from Benji Tembo and put the ball past Redhawk goalie Zach Taylor.
 
The score was Bielanski's second of the season.
 
The Anderson-Taraszkiewicz shutout was the duo's second combined of the early season and the squad's third straight.
 
The Mustangs will have little time to spend on this one as they turn around less than 24 hours later to take on host Embry-Riddle in a 2:30 p.m. match on Saturday afternoon.