The Oglethorpe men's soccer team got two goals just before the halftime whistle and another not too long after the start of the second half to down in-state opponent Piedmont 3-0 Tuesday night in Demorest, Georgia. The result gave the Stormy Petrels a win in their first road contest of the season and improved them to 2-1-1 on the year.

The Petrels were very lively in the first half, firing shot after shot at the homestanding Lions' goal. They fired 12 shots to Piedmont's three over the course of the period and forced the Lion goalkeeper into making five saves. They also won four first-half corner kicks to Piedmont's none. However, they were unable to break through for much of the period.

That changed in the 42nd minute when Piedmont defenders knocked a well-placed cross from Oglethorpe freshman midfielder Arturo Hernandez into the back of the net for an own goal. It did not stay 1-0 for long, though, as fellow freshman midfielder Jose Perez took another well-placed feed from Hernandez and slotted it into the back of the net in the 45th minute, just before halftime, to suddenly give the visitors a commanding 2-0 lead.

The Petrels continued to attack the Piedmont goal early in the second half, looking for the game-clinching tally. It came in the 53rd minute when senior midfielder Nick Muntean knocked home a feed from freshman midfielder Topher Marshall to give his team the 3-0 advantage.

Senior goalkeeper Vaughn Moore had another great game and has yet to allow a regular-time goal this season. He kept a clean sheet through 70 minutes, making three saves, before giving way to sophomore backup Robert Goldin. Hernandez had the best game of his young career, as well, putting two of his three shots on target and recording a pair of assists in the process.

"This was a good team win," said Head Coach Jon Akin. "I thought we played with a lot of energy from the opening whistle and we eventually wore them down and put several chances away. It's good to see us start to do that in the last couple of games."

The Petrels outshot the Lions 18-5 over the course of the game, including an 8-4 mark in shots on goal. They also took four corner kicks to just one for the Lions.

The Petrels will face perhaps their toughest opponent of the season on Friday when they travel to Mount Berry, Georgia, to take part in the Berry Invitational. They'll take on No. 2 Wheaton (Illinois) at 3 p.m. on Friday before concluding their stay in Northwest Georgia with a 3 p.m. Saturday tilt against Averett.