Amherst, MA --- Shawn Rapal (San Jose, CA) recorded the only goal of the match early in the second half to lift nationally-ranked Amherst to a 1-0 victory over visiting WPI in a non-conference men's soccer showdown on Tuesday evening on Gooding Field.    
 
The Mammoths, who earlier Tuesday moved up five spots from 12th to a tie for seventh in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25, ups their mark to 4-0-1 on the season with the Crimson and Gray falls to 1-3-3 overall.
 
After a scoreless first half, the hosts netted the game-winner 11:18 into the second stanza when Rapal tallied his second goal of the season and fourth of his career off a fed from Ada Okorogheye (London, England).
 
Goalkeeper Max Landa (La Crescenta, CA) was called upon to make two stops in a winning effort for the Mammoths.  Julian Quaresima (East Meadow, NY) was strong in net for WPI, surpassing his career-best in saves with 10.  The graduate student's previous career-high was eight, just last Tuesday at home against Eastern Nazarene.  
 
Amherst outshot the visitors 20-4 on the night and held a 6-2 advantage in corners.  The Engineers received shots from Luke Savoie (Mansfield, MA), Tora Ito (Hopkinton, MA), Francesco Valagussa (Arlington, MA) Santino Bazzini (Buenos Aires, Argentina) with Valagussa and Bazzini accounting for the shots on frame.
 
Both teams return to action with conference home contests on Saturday afternoon.  WPI entertains NEWMAC foe Emerson at 3pm while Amherst plays the first of back-to-back weekend matches by welcoming Bates to Western Mass for a 3pm matchup.