HOBOKEN, N.J. (October 13, 2021) – Despite controlling play for the entire first half, the Stevens Institute of Technology men's soccer team dropped a heartbreaking 1-0 decision to Arcadia University Tuesday evening in a MAC Freedom match played at the DeBaun Athletic Complex.
Thomas Hoy's strike in the 85th minute was the only goal of the match as Arcadia improved to 6-8 on the year and to 2-2 in conference play.
Senior
Adam Silva led both sides with five shots as Stevens saw its two-match winning streak come to an end in falling to 7-5-1 on the year and to 2-2 in the MAC Freedom. Stevens is one of five teams tied with six points in the conference standings, three behind first-place Wilkes, who improved to 3-0 in league play with an overtime victory on the road at Misericordia.
With the teams seemingly headed towards overtime, Arcadia's Daniel Tittlemayer received a long through ball that ran parallel to the near-side touch line. Tittlemayer collected the ball and entered the left side of the 18-yard box, before pivoting away from a defender. He then sent a ball back into space at the edge of the attacking third, where Hoy had time to receive the pass and take a few quick steps to his right, before uncorking a right-footed shot from just beyond the 18. The well-struck shot split two Duck defenders and skipped past Aidan Borioitti into the bottom-right corner of the goal.
Hoy's strike spoiled a brilliant effort by the Ducks over the opening 45 minutes. The Ducks out-shot Arcadia 10-0 in the opening half, while also earning three corners. Stevens nearly broke through in the 31st minute, when three scoring attempts from dangerous areas were thwarted. First, junior
Bruno Andino's blast from outside the 18 rang off the crossbar, which was immediately followed by shots from graduate student
Cristiano Hocken and first-year
Luca Campbell from just beyond the six, which were both blocked.
Boriotti and Arcadia's Jake Varrato each made one save in the first meeting between the teams since the 2007 season.
Inside the Numbers
- Stevens finished with a 16-4 advantage in shots, although the Knights held a 2-1 margin in shots on goal.
- Arcadia didn't record its first shot until the 52nd minute, when Hoy's initial shot was collected by Boriotti.
- The Ducks out-earned Arcadia 4-3 in corners, although Arcadia had a 2-1 edge in the second half.
- The Ducks kept Arcadia's leading scorer, Duncan O'Connor in check, holding the midfielder without a shot.
- Hoy was shown caution following his goal for removing his jersey.
Unsung Hero
- In his first career start, junior Sean Ryan made several sliding tackles that won key 50/50 balls in the midfield. The Nanuet, New York native also had a dangerous header attempt in the 78th minute that fell just left of the goal.
From the Sidelines - Head Coach Dale Jordan
- "Really tough result. Performance wise, I was really proud of the effort; we created plenty of chances but couldn't apply the final finish."
- "Soccer can be a cruel sport, where you can dominate a game, but still come away losing. We will look to rebound on Saturday against a very organized and well coached Misericordia team."
Up Next
- Men's Soccer returns to the pitch on Oct. 16 for a crucial conference match at Misericordia.
- The teams played to a scoreless draw on Oct. 5, 2019 in what is believed to be the only other meeting between the programs.
- Links for live stats and video are available on StevensDucks.com.
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