MADISON, N.J. – The College of New Jersey men's soccer team opened up 2018 with a strong performance as they defeated Centenary University 3-0 on a rainy Friday afternoon at the Drew Fall Festival.

In the opening half, the Lions came out swinging and has several good scoring chances. After the first few were turned away by the Cyclone keeper, the Lions found the back of the net in the 25^th minute. Dylan Teixeira sent a beautiful high pass from the right sideline towards the top of the box, and Ryan Vazquez collected it with a defender draped on him and beat the keeper for the first goal of the 2018 season. Vazquez started 2018 where he left off in 2017, as he scored six goals in a three game span at the end of the year.

On the defensive end, Matt Decker stopped several breakouts by the Cyclones to keep the offense at bay. The Lions took a 1-0 lead into halftime, and outshot the Cyclones 9-0 in the opening stanza.

The Lions did not ease off the gas pedal in the second half, and continued to pressure the Cyclone defense. Vazquez struck once again as he put the Lions out in front with another goal in the 53rd minute. He had defenders all over him yet was able to cut inside and slip it in the far post. The Lions' defensive unit stifled the Cyclones, as they did not register a shot until the 68^th minute. The remainder of the game was controlled by the Lions, and Nick Sample added an exclamation point in the 86^th minute with a goal to give the Lions the 3-0 advantage.

In net, Daniel Mecadon earned the victory and the shutout in his fourth career start.

The Lions outshot the Cyclones 13-4, and had a 9-0 edge in shots on goal.

This marks the fourth consecutive win in the season opener for TCNJ dating back to the 2015 season.

The Drew Fall Festival continues tomorrow, with the Lions taking on Marymount University at 1 p.m.