Pochop scores twice, Storm beat Bethel 4-1 in season opener

INDIANOLA, Iowa - Garrett Pochop scored two goals and the Simpson men's soccer team pulled away to beat Bethel 4-1 in the season-opener Thursday.

Nick Joslyn and Darius Doswell also scored for the Storm (1-0), who improved to 5-0-1 in season-openers under head coach Rick Isaacson. Simpson avenged the only non-win in Isaacson's six years, a 2-2 draw with Bethel in last year's opener.

"We spent a lot of time in the preseason talking about a new team, a new year, and new expectations," Isaacson said. "We wanted to wash the bad taste out of our mouth from the 2015 season."

Simpson out-shot Bethel 22-4 on the day but didn't pull away until Pochop connected on his second goal late in the second half. The junior weaved through traffic and blasted a shot from the top of the box to make it 3-1 in the 78th minute for his second career two-goal game.

"We wanted to use our depth and rely on our depth to wear them down," Isaacson said. "We wanted to push them and try to take over the game in the 70th or 80th minute."

Joslyn put Simpson on the board in the fifth minute before Danny Jaderholm found the back of the net to help the Royals (0-1) draw even. Pochop's first goal stood up as the game-winner when he one-timed a pass from Donevan Roe to make it 2-1in the 43rd minute.

Doswell closed the scoring in the 81st minute when he took a perfect corner by Sam Stephens and connected from seven yards out.

Chris Harris had a relatively quiet night in goal, making two saves in his first career win.