Haverford knocks off No. 2 Rowan, off to best start since 1977

Haverford College scored twice in the second half and continued their defensive domination on their home field Tuesday afternoon with a 2-0 win over No. 2 ranked Rowan University.

Senior defender Kieran Kunihiro scored off a long throw-in by teammate Charles Sharp three minutes into the second half and Thomas Vanni (Wilmington, Del.) scored off a counter attack from a Rowan corner kick in the 76th minute to secure the Fords’ best start since 1977 and hand Rowan their first loss of the season.

The victory was also Haverford’s highest-ranked victory since they knocked off then-No. 1 Franklin & Marshall in October 2015.

Since a 2-2 draw to open the season at home with Arcadia, the Fords (4-0-3) have conceded just once on Walton Field and recorded their fourth shutout of the season against a Profs attack that had average more than 2 goals a game coming in.

Since starting the season 5-0-0, Rowan is now winless in their last two with a 1-1 draw at Scranton and Tuesday’s loss. Haverford heads to Gettysburg on Saturday to kick off the Centennial Conference season and will be back home Sept. 23 to host non-conference local opponent Penn State Brandywine.

Matthew Ralph

Matthew Ralph is the managing editor of Philadelphia Soccer Now. He's covered soccer at all levels for a decade in the Philadelphia region and has also written for TheCup.us, NPSL, PrepSoccer and other publications. He lives with his wife and two young children in Broomall, Pa., but grew up in South Jersey and is originally from Kansas.

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