PHILADELPHIA – Head coach Don D'Ambra has had nothing but brilliant things to say about his senior class entering the unconventional 2020-21 spring campaign. On Saturday night, it was the seniors who led the Saint Joseph's men's soccer squad to a 2-0 win over Drexel in the 2020-21 home opener on Sweeney Field. With the result, both the Hawks and Dragons move to 1-1 on the season.

In his first collegiate start, senior defender Jack Hirschfield drew a foul inside the box to set up a penalty kick for senior midfielder Alan Kahlenbeck, and the captain buried the PK in the 19th minute to put the Hawks up, 1-0, early. Senior defender David Grana would score SJU's security goal in the 52nd minute while in his first collegiate start, senior goalkeeper Kyle Allan (1-0) made the first four saves of his career in the clean sheet.

"This was a great win for the team," said D'Ambra following the victory. "I was very pleased with how we started the game attacking aggressively, which I thought set the tone early. It was a great defensive team effort to get the shutout, as well. It was an excellent team performance on both ends of the ball."

How It Happened:
• Allan made two key saves within a 37-second span (4:51, 5:38) to keep the Dragons off the board early.

"I'm just so happy we were able to get the result," said Allan following his first collegiate win in net. "This team works so hard, and tonight was a well-deserved win. I couldn't be more proud of these guys."

• Hirschfield drew a foul inside the box to set up Kahlenbeck's penalty kick opportunity.

"On that PK, I saw Alex Hood flick the ball, and as I ran into the box, I was pulled down," said Hirschfield. "When the referee called the penalty, I was already celebrating before Alan took the PK. I knew he was going to score it, and tonight was a well-deserved result for our team. Getting the start was an awesome feeling, and with a limited number of players available, it was an even better feeling to get a win for our home opener."

• In just his second match back from injury since October 27, 2018, Kahlenbeck set up for the PK with chants of "Let's go, Capt.," from the Hawk bench and fired his shot past Drexel goalkeeper Cameron Sanders for the 1-0 advantage.

"Jack [Hirschfield] did a great job of being aggressive off of a free kick and earned us that penalty kick," said captain Kahlenbeck. "I'm super proud of this team for getting our first win of the season. Everyone stepped up and played a lot of minutes and worked really hard. It was great to see the preparation pay off."

• Allan made his third save of the night in the 25th minute to maintain SJU's 1-0 advantage.

• The Hawks opened the second half in style as sophomore midfielder James Fletcher dominated a battle for possession on the goal line and kept the ball in bounds for the Crimson and Gray. He found space and, from the left side of the box, sent a pass across to Grana, who put away his first goal of the season and fourth of his career in the 52nd minute.

"When I saw Fletch about to play the ball, my eyes lit up," said Grana. "He played a great ball, and I was happy to finish it off! The celebration definitely needs some work, but I'm happy to be able to contribute to the team in any way I can. It was an amazing team performance from everyone. I was excited to get the win and a clean sheet, especially with Jack [Hirschfield] coming in on the back line. Everyone was tuned in and grinded it out until the final whistle. It's always great getting wins on the mighty Hawk Hill."

• Allan made his fourth and final save of the night in the 72nd minute.

• Drexel's Michael McCarthy was hit with a second yellow card caution in the 78th minute, and the Dragons played a man down for the remaining 12:10 of play.

Behind the Box Score
• Allan, Grana, Hirschfield, junior defender Johnny Cunningham, sophomore defender Alex Hartmann, and senior midfielders Daniel Morales and Aidan Watkins turned in full-match efforts.
• Redshirt freshman Alex Hood made his first collegiate start, earning the starting nod at forward and playing a career-high 49 minutes.
• Freshman forward Nyles Cayemitte made his collegiate debut, playing 37 minutes off the bench.
• Sophomore forward Ryan Hay played a career-high 30 minutes off the bench.