Box Score HENNIKER, N.H.-The New England College men's soccer team downed the visiting Panthers of Plymouth State University 2-1 on Sunday evening in non-conference action at Don Melander Field.

The win marks the first of the season for the Pilgrims, who now sit at 1-2, while the loss drops the Panthers to 0-2.

The Panthers would strike first 15:07 into the first half as Senad Mehmedovic (Concord, N.H.) placed a free kick directly in front of the right post, where teammate Ted Karlstrand (Halmstad, Sweden) was waiting to place the header into the left corner.

The Pilgrims responded 11 minutes later as senior Sebastian Andersson (Sundyberg, Sweden) fed the ball from the right side to a step inside the six-yard box, where first-year Michael Skarbelis (North Andover, Mass.) one-touched it past diving PSU goalkeeper Felix Lindeberg (Stockholm, Sweden).

Lindeberg had an impressive first half in net for the Panthers, as the Pilgrims peppered him with back-to-back low shots that resulted in diving saves early in the half. The sophomore keeper finished the half with six saves.

NEC keeper Tenzin Khenrab (Greenfield, Mass.) was also tested in the first half, as he faced nine Panthers shots and made five saves.

The Pilgrims would take a 2-0 lead just XX into the second half as Andersson netted his first goal of the season. The senior forward took a shot first from six yards out, had his shot blocked by a Panthers defender, and buried the rebound to net what would prove to be the game-winner.

NEC had another strong opportunity to score with just over 13 minutes left to play as Ronsard Masamba (Haverhill, Mass.) had his defender beat, but his high chip shot was stopped by Lindeberg.

Khenrab finished the game with 11 saves in the win, while Lindberg totaled seven saves. The Pilgrims out-shot the Panthers 25-16 on the evening and 13-3 in the second half.

New England College returns to action on Wednesday, September 10th when they host Regis College at 4:00 p.m. at Don Melander Field.