Ohio Wesleyan 4, Kenyon 0

Nov. 5, 2008

Freshman forward Matt Bonfini (Dublin/Coffman) scored twice as ninth-ranked Ohio Wesleyan posted 2 goals in each half to defeat Kenyon in a North Coast Athletic Conference tournament semifinal contest on Wednesday at Roy Rike Field.

Ohio Wesleyan will host third-seeded Wittenberg, a 1-0 winner over Hiram on Wednesday, in the tournament championship game at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Roy Rike Field.

The Bishops converted on their first good scoring chance when sophomore forward Tyler Wall (Columbus/Upper Arlington) centered the ball from the left side to Bonfini, whose shot hit the right post and bounced in at the 13:16 mark of the first half.

Kenyon's Felix Hoffmann nearly tied the game twice, first in the 21st minute when his shot from the top of the box skimmed just over the crossbar, and then in the 34th minute when his 30-yard blast off a restart was snared by Bishop keeper Richard Ott (Norwalk).

Ohio Wesleyan added to its lead late in the first half when the Bishops were awarded a free kick about 20 yards from the Lord goal. Senior back T.J. Trigg (Westerville/North) ripped a shot inside the left post to put the Bishops ahead, 2-0, with 4:35 left in the period.

The Bishop defense kept the shutout going early in the second half when Hoffmann's shot was cleared off the goal line by sophomore midfielder Ryan Harmanis (Hilliard/Davidson).

Less than 2 minutes later, the Bishops had a restart about 35 yards out from the Kenyon goal. Sophomore back Eric Laipple (Westerville/South) sent the ball into the box and junior back Matt Giannetti (Montclair, N.J.) headed it home for a 3-0 advantage with 36:04 to play.

The Bishops added to the lead in the 63rd minute when Ott punted the ball out of his own end to past midfield, setting up Bonfini for a breakaway goal, with Ott credited with an assist on the play.

Kenyon outshot Ohio Wesleyan, 13-11. Ott finished with 4 saves for the Bishops, while Jamie White had 1 save for the Lords.

Box Score