NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Senior midfielder Austin Ward (North Andover, Mass.) scored a pair of goals to help Saint Joseph's College (10-1-2, 9-0-0 GNAC) erase an early 1-0 deficit and defeat Albertus Magnus College (8-4-1, 6-2-1 GNAC), 2-1, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's soccer action on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Falcons scored just 28 seconds after the opening whistle, as a turnover in the Monks' defensive end resulted in a long shot by Kelvin Cortez that slipped between the legs of SJC goalkeeper David Walbridge (Hampden, Mass.). Arian Bobi was credited with an assist on the play.
Ward tied the game in the 21st minute with a goal off a Rion Dos Santos (São Paulo, Brazil) pass but the Falcons had a prime opportunity to regain the lead seven minutes later when Cortez was awarded a penalty kick attempt after the Monks committed a foul in the box. Cortez lined up to take the kick and aimed for the lower left corner, but Walbridge was there for the save to preserve the tie score.
The Monks netted what proved to be the game-winning goal less than two minutes later, when a beautiful lead pass from sophomore Aidan Hickey (Yarmouth, Maine) found Noah Elmore (Berlin, Vt.), who raced up the right sideline past an Albertus defender. Elmore turned the corner near the end line and dished cross-field to Ward, who buried a shot to the lower left corner.
TEAM STATS:
The Monks held the advantage in shots (12-9) and shots on goal (6-5) while the Falcons posted a 5-2 lead in corner kicks.
THE KEEPERS:
Walbridge and his counterpart, Albertus Magnus netminder Garfield Robinson, both notched four saves in the hard-fought conference contest.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the victory Saint Joseph's improves to 9-8-0 all-time versus Albertus Magnus College and has now defeated the Falcons in five-consecutive meetings dating back to the 2016 campaign. The Falcons' goal in today's game was their first versus St. Joe's since they defeated the Monks, 2-1, on November 1st, 2015.
NEXT!
The Monks will play at Anna Maria College on Wednesday at 7:00 PM.
