PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's soccer team closed out non-conference play on Tuesday night, topping William & Mary 6-1 at Rhodes Field.
 
Multi-goal performances from the offense, highlighted by a hat trick from Patrick Cayelli, pushed Penn past W&M and to a 6-2-4 record heading into the final four games of the regular season.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*Penn scored a season-high six goals in the victory, the most since the 2022 season qhen the Red and Blue topped FDU 6-1.
 
*The hat trick marks a career-high outing in goals (3) and points (9) for senior Cayelli, and the first hat trick since Michael Hewes netted one at Penn State in 2023.
 
*Romeo Dahlen netted a pair of goals in the first half to record his third brace of the year. Jack Wagoner rounded out the goal scorers in the match.
 
*Phillip Falcon III had a career-high performance in the box, stopping six of the Tribe's shots.
 
*Max Bohemier and Becket Empson-Speiden made their collegiate debuts in the win.
 
How It Happened
The Quakers struck early in the match, as Dahlen netted his fifth goal of the year in the seventh minute to put Penn up 1-0. The Tribe tried to even things up quickly after Dahlen's tally as Webb Kosich and Gabe Ruitenberg recorded back-to-back shots that the keeper Falcon scooped up easily.  Five minutes later, forward Dahlen netted his second of the night after stealing the ball to push the lead to a pair in the 16th minute.
 
The Red and Blue continued to fire on all cylinders as Marco Bottene and Cayelli attempted shots within the next ten minutes, but Bottene's was misdirected and keeper Ryan Eapen saved Cayelli's to hold the game at 2-0 with less than 20 minutes left of the first.
 
Michael Howard and Owen Sullivan kept the streak going with two straight shots in the 34th minute, but both were kicked aside before they could reach Eapen. The Tribe tried one more shot at Falcon in the final minute of the half, but the junior made the save to hold the lead at two heading into the break.
 
W&M amped up the energy to open the second half, as Max Cooper and Evan Rabush tallied back-to-back shots in the 53rd and 54th minutes, but Falcon saved Cooper, and the Quaker defense kicked Rabush's away to keep the hole at two.
 
Penn got back into its rhythm in the 59th minute, as Oliver Pratt shot one that went wide. Two minutes later, Joaquin Niehenke went striking down the field, giving the ball to junior Sullivan. Sullivan dished it up to Wagoner, allowing the senior to hit the back and extend the lead to three.
 
The Tribe struck back in the 71st minute, as Alex Garrison ruined the shutout to cut the lead to 3-1. The goal shifted the energy in the game, as William & Mary were handed yellow cards in the 75th and 81st minutes, allowing Cayelli to net a pair of goals to extend the lead to 5-1. The midfielder put the nail in the coffin, scoring his third goal of the night two minutes later to score the first hat trick of his career and push the game to its final tally of 6-1.
 
Up Next
The Quakers (6-2-4, 1-0-1 Ivy League) continue their homestand on Saturday, Oct. 18, hosting Cornell for a 7 p.m. matchup at Rhodes Field.