TROY, N.Y. - Junior Blake Adams scored in the 66th minute and the 11th-ranked Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's soccer team went on to defeat Keene State College, 1-0, in non-conference action at East Campus Stadium.

The Engineers, who played their first-ever game on the stadium turf, earned their eighth shutout of the season to improve to 10-1-1 overall.  The Owls fall to 7-6-0.

Off a throw-in, senior forward Sean Fleury (Princeton, MA/Wachusett Regional) crossed the ball into the middle.  Owls' goalie Peter Kersker (Ipswich, MA/Ipswich) came out to play the ball, but tipped it toward the net and Adams (Cedar Grove, NJ/Seton Hall Prep.) was there to bury a shot into the open right corner of the goal.

Keene State coach Ron Butcher disputed the goal.  I thought Kersker was hit in the back when he went up in the air and had control of the ball" he said.

Keene State tried to pull even in the closing minutes of the game, but the Rensselaer defense proved to be too much as it held the Owls to zero shots in the final 45 minutes of the contest.

The Engineers and Owls set a defensive tone at the game, backed by the solid play of Kersker and RPI goalie Alex Penny (Northport, NY/Northport). 

Keene State's Scott Cluff (Kingston, MA/Silver Lake) tried to get the visitors on the board early, sending a shot in on the RPI goal in the 3rd minute, but Penny was there to make the save.  The Engineers had a several chances, but saw a number of shots blocked by the Owls' defense.    

Penny picked up his ninth win of the season and seventh shutout, stopping one shot to improve to 9-1-1 overall.  Kersker made four saves and is now 5-6-0.

Despite the loss, Butcher was pleased with the play of his team.  "I thought we played with a great deal of energy," said Butcher, who was missing five starters and juggled his line-up putting eight freshmen on the field.  "If we can have the same kind of effort in our remaining games, we'll be fine." 

 Rensselaer, coached by former Owl Adam Clinton, finished with the advantage in shots, 16-2, and had eight corner kicks to Keene State's zero.

Keene State is in action on Saturday at Little East-rival UMass-Boston (1 pm).

(Courtesy RPI Sports Information)