Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. — Head coach Gary Book and the Adelphi men's soccer team returned to the field on Wednesday afternoon when they took a quick trip up to Mercy University. 

The game started off slow with the first shot not being registered until the 14th minute. Soon after, the Mavericks sent a goal kick to midfield where the loose ball was won by the Panthers. Sam Nolan streaked up the sideline and found Matthew Murphy in the middle of the box for a beautiful goal to give the Cats an early lead. 

Adelphi kept the offensive pressure going as Mercy struggled to clear the ball. In the 27th minute, a Panther throw in batted off of a Maverick defender and landed at the feet of Gonzalo Gil. The Spainard fired the ball off of the Mercy keeper and into the net to extend the lead. 

Book's squad continued to dominate the game even up two. In the 41st minute a Richard DeBrosse shot was saved, leading to an Adelphi corner kick. Benjamin Salas swung the ball in and Lucas Nicolaou sent a perfect pass off of his head to Stephen Betz who quickly tapped the ball in for his first goal in the brown and gold. 

The Panthers went into the break with a 3-0 edge and never looked back. The second half was a sleepier one while Adelphi played more of a possession game, but Mercy never truly threatened, recording three of their shots in the final fifteen minutes as the Cats cruised to a win. 

Murphy let the team in shots (four) while picking up a goal and an assist. Andrea Farinella earned his first career victory as a Panther and recorded three saves. 

The Adelphi men's soccer team will return to the pitch on Sunday at 3 p.m. when it travels up to East Stroudsburg for a non-conference tilt.