KINGS POINT, N.Y. (Oct. 21, 2015) – With Landmark Conference playoff implications looming large at The United States Merchant Marine Academy on Wednesday night, the Drew University men's soccer team responded to the pressure with a significant 3-1 victory.
 
After falling down 1-0 in just the seventh minute of the contest, the Rangers (11-3-2, 3-2-1 Landmark) rattled off three unanswered tallies by junior captain Ian Pavlak and two from junior forward Bass Etta-Ashu to pick up three points in the conference standings with just two games remaining in the season. Drew moves into a tie with Merchant Marine for the fourth and final playoff spot with 10 points, but now have a game in hand and hold the tiebreaker over the Mariners (9-6-1, 3-3-1) with Wednesday's head-to-head victory. Susquehanna University and The University of Scranton each sit a point above Drew with 11 points for second and third place.
 
The contest marked the final time these two teams would meet in the regular season as Landmark Conference opponents with the Mariners set to depart for the Skyline Conference in 2016-17. The win at Brooks field on Wednesday marks the first Drew win in Kings Point since 2011.
 
The equalizer came in the 27^th minute when the Rangers were tripped up for a foul 25 yards from the Mariners' goal. Sophomore Benjamin Audi stepped up to the take the free kick and launched a curling shot around the USMMA defensive wall and toward the net. The Merchant Marine keeper leapt to tip the ball with his fingertips as it careened off the crossbar and back into play. Pavlak charged on and powered a volley into the back of the net for his second goal of the season.
 
The Rangers kept the pressure on in the second half, forcing two saves off shots by Audi and Pavlak in the half's first five minutes. The pressure paid off in the 61^st minute when an expertly threaded pass up the middle by freshman midfielder Zach Lipshitz found the striding feet of Etta-Ashu. The junior striker put away his fourth goal of the season and netted what would become his second game-winner this fall.
 
Etta-Ashu took matters into his own hands in adding some insurance in the second half, scoring his fifth of the year in the 66^th minute off a clean feed from junior Cole Leckburg.
 
Junior goalkeeper John Marques saw 14 shots fired by the Mariners, and came up with three saves in the victory. Drew, meanwhile, took 15 shots on Wednesday with 10 of them on target. Audi led the offensive charge with four shots and three on goal. Lipshitz took three and forced two saves with his offense.
 
The Rangers are able to control their own destiny two games out from a possible Landmark Championships berth. The first test will come on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 1:00 p.m. at Ranger Stadium against Elizabethtown College, the No. 18-ranked team in Division III and the only undefeated club in the conference at 6-0.