Seton Hall University
Bloomfield
Greene's Hat Trick Powers Hall Past Bloomfield
8/23/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - Senior Kai Greene (South Orange, N.J.) struck three times in a span of 21 minutes for The Hall on Saturday as the Pirates downed Bloomfield College, 3-1, in their final tune-up for the 2014 campaign.
Greene, who ranked fourth on the squad in scoring as a junior, put the finishing touches on an impressive preseason over which he totaled five goals in two matches while assuming a more advanced role in the Seton Hall attack. All three scores were assisted by Victor Manosalvas (Clifton, N.J.) who recently wrapped up a highly successful summer stint with the New York Red Bulls Under-23 squad.
Following an opening quarter-hour in which Preseason All-BIG EAST honoree Samuel Geiler (Offenburg, Germany) and senior Jason Wellington (West Palm Beach, Fla.) repeatedly opened up the Bears' defense with runs down the left wing, it was a Manosalvas charge down the same flank that led to the opening score.
With just over 15 minutes gone, the Clifton product swung a ball in centrally where Greene found space in the area to control and rifle a right-footed shot just under the crossbar to put the Pirates on top. The duo would link up again just seven minutes later when Manosalvas played an incisive ball in behind the Bloomfield back line allowing Greene to run on in space. With just the keeper to beat, Greene evaded the rushing challenge and sent a shot into the vacant net for his second goal of the match.
Bloomfield pulled one back in the 32nd minute when a counter attack produced an opportunity from just outside the area that resulted in a deflected shot which found its way past Seton Hall's sophomore keeper Julian Spindler (Weiersbach, Germany) who was otherwise steady in 55 minutes of action.
After a near miss for Greene in the 35th minute that saw his shot from a sharp angle ring off the post, he and Manosalvas combined yet again to push the gap back to two and produce what would be the final goal of the match. With Bloomfield in possession and the back line pushing forward, the Pirates won the ball in the Bears' half and Manosalvas slotted in Greene who did not miss a second opportunity to collect the hat trick.
The prolific performance followed a preseason opener in which the local product collected two goals in a 3-2 triumph over Rider.
The second half produced a number of chances for Seton Hall to extend its advantage even further as the Pirates finished proceedings with 16 shots on net.
The stellar showing sends third-year head coach Gerson Echeverry's squad into the regular season on a high note as the Pirates will open the new campaign with a trip to Rhode Island on Friday, August 29. Last season, the Pirates opened the year with a 3-0 shutout of the Rams at Owen T. Carroll Field.
Kick-off on Friday is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. from Kingston.
