ERIE, Pa. – A first half penalty save from Gannon goalkeeper Maximiliano Rocco (Florence, S.C.) gave the Golden Knights all the momentum they would need in Sunday's season opener, eventually scoring two second-half goals to defeat Tiffin University, 2-0.
 
Rocco's moment came in the 17^th minute, after a Gannon foul in the box led to Tiffin's Juan Rosique stepping up to the penalty spot. Rosique went for placement over power, and Rocco was able to dive to his right to deny the go-ahead goal and keep the game scoreless. The Golden Knights' best chance in the first half came in the 41^st minute, when a low cross found its way to the feet of substitute Furkan Yildirim (Berlin, Germany/Thomas Mann Gymnasium). He fired on frame but Tiffin keeper Declan Lehman was there to fall on it for one of his four saves in the game.
 
The action picked up in the second half, and Gannon's breakthrough came in the 63^rd minute from a set piece. Junior Lennox Crews (Offenbach, Germany/Leibnizschule) took a corner kick and curved it beautifully into the box, perhaps taking the slightest of deflections, but somehow finding it's way into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.
 
Sophomore Tinashe Katsande (Norwich, England/Dereham Sixth Form College) looked to have scored another goal for the Golden Knights later in the half—even beginning to celebrate with his teammates—but it was disallowed due to an offside ruling.
 
The insurance goal would have to wait until the 78^th minute, courtesy of some unselfish combination play from sophomores Benjamin Querling (Zuelpich, Germany/Emil-Fischer Gymnasium) and Furkan Yildirim (Berlin, Germany/Thomas Mann Gymnasium). The tried-and-true give-and-go worked to perfection, and Querling slid a ball across the box for Yildirim to power home to score his first career goal for the Golden Knights. Gannon's defense and Rocco (six saves) kept Tiffin's offense at bay to earn the clean sheet.
 
Three Gannon players (Sergio Del Castillo (Madrid, Spain/), Querling, and Yildirim) all tied for the team-high in shots with two each. Both teams were relatively even in team totals, with the Golden Knights holding slight advantages in shots (9-8) and corner kicks (5-3).
 
The upcoming week will be extremely busy for Gannon, with a stretch of four games in seven days. Next up is a non-conference road contest at Lock Haven University scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 8 at 4:00 p.m.