Knights shut down Gators
Photo Courtesy of SUNY Geneseo
This Saturday, Geneseo took to the soccer field against Russell Sage and dominated the game. Both the men’s and women’s teams won their matches 4-0 against the Gators, extending both their win streaks to three this season. There was little retaliation from Sage, with both Knights’ squads having double the total shots and shots on goal that Sage attempted. Let’s take a deeper look into the anatomy of these victories.
The men, riding on the confidence of their prior two victories, wasted no time after the whistle. In just the first 38 seconds of the game, a cross from Eric Carnes into the box set up Michael Ruggiero to finish, putting the Knights up 1-0 before everyone could take their seats in the crowd. Ruggiero would go on to take another four shots on goal. At the 12:57 mark, Aiden Lodie, from a setup by Owen Burke, would blast a one-touch shot to the back of the net, giving the Knights their own net with a now commanding 2-0 lead far before halftime.
The action came to a simmer for the remainder of the first half, but only five minutes after everyone returned to play, Geneseo’s Eric Carnes broke away from his Sage defender and placed a tough shot into the Gators’ near post from Ruggiero’s assist, putting the game at 3-0. As if that wasn’t enough, with 13 minutes left in regulation, Feranc Bagi capitalized on a big save from their keeper, Max Crothall, and scored an unassisted goal to tie the bow on the game, securing the Knights’ victory, 4-0. Crothall’s save also secured his fourth shutout of the season, having a total of five saves against Sage. The men’s conference record now stands at 5-2, with an overall record of 8-4-1.
The women’s game told a similar story, having doubled Sage’s shots on goal and even tripling their total shots. Wasting no time, Ella Yartym made a push downfield and was able to chip a shot over Sage’s diving keeper, starting the Knights off strong at 1-0 in the first two minutes of play. She would go on to take another five shots on goal. In the twenty-first minute, Riley Griffin put a header in the back of the Gators’ net off a corner kick from Carley Chupick. For the rest of the half, Geneseo’s defense held Sage to only four shots on goal, with none being successful, and their lead of 2-0 stood going into the final half.
Griffin would strike again in the fifty-third minute, connecting yet another header off a corner from Grace Engle, officially taking any remaining pressure off the Knights. They finished out the match 4-0, with a cross from Lauren DeMura finding the cleat of Kirseten Shepherd as she tapped into the bottom left corner. Keeper Emily McLouth secured her fourth shutout game this season, making a total of four saves against Sage. This win elevated the women’s conference record to 4-1-2 and their overall record to 6-3-3.
Looking ahead, both the men’s and women’s teams will battle against Alfred University on Oct. 14, with the men at home and the women making the trip to Alfred. Last year, the men tied, 2-2, and the women took the win, 2-0.