COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College men's soccer team lost to regionally-ranked Southern Connecticut State University, 2-1, on Saturday during Northeast-10 Conference play at Duffy Field. The Owls were sixth in this week's United Soccer Coaches East Region Poll.
RECORDS
- Saint Michael's (0-8-4, 0-4-3 NE10), Southern Connecticut State (6-3-3, 3-2-2 NE10)
SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS
- Sophomore Amos Schramm (Sagard, Mecklenburg-Pomerania, Germany/Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Gymnasium), 1 goal
- Senior Liam Barrett (Saugus, Mass./Malden Catholic/UMass Lowell), 3 saves
OPPONENT LEADERS
- Sophomore Leroy Best, 1 goal
- Sophomore Alessio Caradolfo, 1 goal
- Sophomore Devin Juan, 7 saves
GAME FACTS
- After yielding six of the first seven shots, Saint Michael's took 19 of the final 22, finishing with a 20-9 lead in shots. Each team took seven corner kicks.
- The Purple Knights' last nine games have featured four ties and three 2-1 losses.
THE ACTION
- Best buried a penalty kick in the 14th minute to give the Owls a lead.
- First-year Cristian Sayers nearly doubled the advantage in the 16th minute, redirecting a pass toward an open net, but sophomore back Brock Martindale (Pittsburgh, Pa./Montour) cleared the ball off the goal line.
- First-year Cooper Goodrich's (Milton, Vt./Milton) line drive from 30 yards in the 29th minute was ticketed for the upper right corner, but a leaping Juan extended to stop the ball, whose momentum still nearly carried it into the net until the netminder covered with sophomore Jake Manley (Burlington, Vt./Burlington) bearing down.
- Junior Omar Alers Rivera (San Sebastián, Puerto Rico/Escuela Antolina Vélez Interamericana de Aguadilla) led a rush toward the Owl net early in the 45th minute and drove a shot on goal that Juan denied with another leaping save.
- The Purple Knights were awarded a penalty kick of their own in the 51st minute, which Schramm buried to level the teams.
- Junior Hideki Morales had a step on the Saint Michael's defense early in the 69th minute before ripping a left-footed shot from the left side of the box that Barrett dove to turn away.
- Junior Alessandro Pescina (Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela/Colegio Loyola Gumilla) nearly broke the deadlock in the 76th minute, if not for another aerial save by Juan, this one at the left post.
- Southern Connecticut State went ahead soon thereafter, as Morales' long free kick from near the sideline drifted to the far side of the box, where Caradolfo pounced on a loose ball and drove a shot into the top netting at 77:50.
- The only shot for either team from that point on was Pescina pushing a shot from the box wide left in the 89th minute following Manley's corner kick entry.
NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME
- Tuesday vs. Saint Anselm College, 3:30 p.m.