BROCKPORT, N.Y. – The College at Brockport Men's Soccer team had many reasons to celebrate coming into Friday night's game, as senior goalkeeper Casey Sullivan was presented a soccer ball signed by all of his teammates prior to the contest for his recent record setting 21st career shutout. The 7 p.m. game was also a battle between two teams with only a single loss on the year and happened to be Brockport's home opener.

Despite many of the possible distractions, the Golden Eagles rallied around one another and secured a 4-0 win in a tighter contest than the score suggests, beating Medaille on Bob Boozer Field. The win not only pushed Sullivan's record shutout total to 22 but was also milestone win number 200 for head coach Gary LaPietra!

Both teams played to a 0-0 halftime draw and the defensive battle carried over into the second half as neither team was able to score for the first 70 minutes of play. Medaille nearly scored in the 68th minute on a direction changing shot in front of the net but Sullivan planted a strong left foot and sprung into the air going perpendicular with the ground to punch the ball from a sure goal into the crossbar which was then cleared by a Golden Eagle defender.

A mere two minutes later, Brockport struck as the booming foot of Collin Goettel drilled a corner kick to the opposite post and a leaping David Rougeux. Rougeux's head elevated past several Maverick defenders and sent the ball into the center of the net giving Brockport a 1-0 advantage.

However the scoring did not stop there as Brockport continued to use its exceptional depth to keep fresh legs on the field and the pressure on Medaille. In the 79th minute of play Justin Mercer dashed down the right side of the field into the Mavericks defensive zone. He sent a hard pass on the turf towards the center of the field. Quintin Volpe was rushing to meet the pass in the center of the keeper's box before a Maverick defender slid in front of him and redirected the pass past his own goalie. Mercer was credited for his first Golden Eagle goal of the season and his career.

Less than four minutes later, Brockport added another score on a header from Peter DiLorenzo. Golden Eagle juniors David LaPietra and Mark Sylvia settled a debate over who would get a crack at the free kick from about forty yards out with an old-school game of rock, paper, scissors. LaPietra won the contest and sent a beautiful arcing ball towards the net. DiLorenzo outjumped the competition and was able to score his fifth goal of the season.

Brockport's onslaught was not finished. LaPietra once again sent a beautiful pass through the center of the field to a flying Golden Eagle, Patrick Sprague. Sprague collected the pass in stride as he outraced all defenders for a one-on-one with the keeper. He sent the ball between the posts for the final score of the game.

On the night, Sullivan finished with six saves and earned his fifth shutout of the season. Several Golden Eagle defenders had phenomenal games holding a potent Medaille attack in check.

The Golden Eagles stay at home and open up State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play on Friday against Buffalo State with a 3 p.m. game. Be sure to stay up to date on all your Golden Eagle scores and awards by following @BportAthletics on Twitter and by liking the "Brockport Golden Eagles" Facebook page.