WILLIAMSTOWN, MA– The Williams College Ephs picked up where they left off last season, with strong defense, and kept a clean sheet against the Wheaton College Lyons.
It was a tightly contested meeting, with a particularly physical battle for the midfield, which resulted in both sides resorting to long balls to the wings or over the top to advance down the field. The Ephs, ultimately, were able to get the ball in more dangerous positions, and create more goal-scoring chances, with freshman forward Jeff Stauffer '27 scoring in the 70' to win it 1-0.
In the first half, the Ephs were able to dominate position—or were at least able to win the ball back more quickly when they lost it—and the ball stayed mainly in the Lyons' half
In the 32' Sophomore Sam Gibson '26 was released into space, and took the two Wheaton center backs on 1v2. He beat them both, and only a last-second sliding challenge from the defense sent his shot wide left, for an Eph corner.
There was nearly a freshman connection In the 38', as Andrew Coelho '27 found Spencer Mix '27 in space with a header. Mix, from the top of the 18 yard box, fired his shot wide to the right. Coehlo looked dangerous all game, as his delivery on through balls and crosses was routinely inch-perfect.
Another freshman, Beck Walters '27, who is 6'4", was a dominant force in the air for the Ephs, soaring skyward to deflect attempted through balls away.
The second half kicked off in a similar fashion, with the Ephs happy to hold the ball with their back line and release their wingers with the long balls. Felipe Gutierrez '25 looked particularly dangerous playing out from right back.
Wheaton, though, began playing with more intensity, and enjoyed a greater share of the possession, although they were unable to carve out a clear-cut goal scoring opportunity.
The Ephs, although playing with less of the ball than in the first half, looked more likely to score. In the 67th minute, Evan Vasquez '26 intercepted an errant past a few yards outside the 18 yard box. His thumping effort, which took a slight deflection off a defender, was parried with a brilliant save from Wheaton goalkeeper Michael O'Gara, who had 10 saves on the day.
Finally, in the 70' minute, the Ephs got their breakthrough. Jeff Stauffer '27 beat the offside trap with his run, and was found in stride by fellow freshman, defender Griffin Labonski '27. With only the goalie to beat, Stauffer made no mistake, finding the bottom corner, as cool as can be.
After the goal, Wheaton picked up the intensity even further, having a goal disallowed for a narrow offside in the 75'.
The final fifteen minutes were a heated affair, with high tension and plenty of chances, mostly for Wheaton. Goalkeeper Ben Diffley came up big for the Ephs on a couple occasions, and Williams was able to close out the victory.
Eph head coach Steffen Siebert heaped praise on his team after the game, especially the new freshmen: "All eight newcomers contributed. One with the game-winning goal. I'm just so unbelievably proud."
The Ephs start the season in fine fashion, and move to 1-0-0. The Wheaton Lyons looked to be a threatening side, but continued an imperfect start to their season, falling to 0-1-2.
