Brockport ties Rochester for second straight season
- Brayden Peters
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
By: Brayden Peters / Sports Writer
BROCKPORT, N.Y. - A year ago from yesterday when the Brockport Golden Eagles men's soccer team faced the Rochester Yellowjackets, a 0-0 tie was the final score. Last night resulted in a similar outcome as the game ended in a 2-2 tie.
"We love playing them, they love playing us," Brockport head coach Gary LaPietra said. "We knew it was going to be a heck of a battle and that's how we prepare for Empire 8. We knew we were in for a match. We didn't care about their record or the goals that they give up. We knew they were going to come into today and slug one out, and we both did. That's how you learn. They bring out the best in us and we bring out the best in them and it was just a good, college game tonight."
With 85:00 on the clock, Brockport led 2-1 and were closing in on its second win of the season. However, the win was denied by Rochester junior forward Will Fallona. Fallona snuck through the defense and redirected a pass from the box into the right side of the net to tie things up.
Both teams managed to get off a shot in the final minutes of the game, but both weren't on net. The Yellowjackets outshot the Golden Eagles seven-to-four in the second half.
Freshman forward Ryan Mathis scored both of Brockport's only goals and they were the first two of his collegiate career.
"He was an All-American in high school for a reason," LaPierta said. "He's got the technical skill set, but more importantly than that, he plays with a heart and an engine that most kids don't understand how to play with. He channels it. He plays with a lot of excitement and a lot of heart and energy. It's amazing to watch him play. We feature him and we'll try to get him the ball, so he can score a goal. He's going to have a great year."
Sophomore goalkeeper Matthew Sandison got the start in net for the Golden Eagles. Sandison made three saves in the contest.
The Golden Eagles pushed for offense from the jump, as freshman forward Ryan Mathis took a shot on net 14 seconds in that was saved. Brockport would be able to keep the ball in enemy territory, making numerous tackles and preventing Rochester from pushing the ball up the wings.
The Yellowjackets were able to maintain possession of the ball in Brockport territory 6:30 into the game. They started to create scoring opportunities from inside the box while the Golden Eagles had trouble generating offense. Not only that, but physicality on both sides started to pick up as the game went along.
Brockport broke the scoreless tie thanks to Mathis, who scored on a header from a free kick that went into the top right corner of the net. Junior defender Trevor Lagarde was given credit for the assist.
"Adrenaline rush kicked in, it was awesome," Mathis said. "Seeing the stands erupt was awesome and my teammates following me, it was just an awesome feeling. It was great. I'm at a lost for words."
Rochester wasn't detered by Mathis' goal and kept creating scoring chances. The Yellowjackets were able to tack on their first goal of the game to tie things up with 33:36 on the clock. Sophomore midfielder Pasquale Carusone drove to the box on a three-on-two chance and kicked the ball into the left side of the net.
At the end of the half, Rochester outshot Brockport seven-to-five.
The Golden Eagles' defense came out flying all over the field to start the second half. Multiple last second tackles were made by Brockport's defenders to eliminate scoring chances for the Yellowjackets.
"We're a very young corps, but we've been working our butts off all preseason," Lagarde said. "The back four, we just stick together and we know how to play with each other right now, which is good since we are only three weeks into the season. So, for us to stay together and stay disciplined all game, it limits our mistakes and we try to limit them to zero and then we'll be good."
However, Rochester continued applying pressure on offense as by the 66:00 mark, the Yellowjackets were outshooting the Golden Eagles five-to-one in the half.
A little over 68:00 into the game, junior midfielder Jadin Lyle slithered his way with the ball into enemy territory. Lyle set up a shot for Mathis, who was fouled and given a penalty kick. Sure enough, Mathis found the net on the shot to give Brockport a 2-1 lead. Lyle wasn't just impactful in moving the ball upfield, but also making tackles to create turnovers on defense.
"Jadin Lyle is the suprise of the team right now," LaPietra said. "He didn't play last year, he was injured a little bit. He had a great preseason for us. He came out in preseason and won the spot, and I looked at my coaching staff and said, 'That kid is a star player.' He played amazing the first two games of the year. I'm very proud of him. A lot of guys would've quit. He stuck with it and now he's got a big future ahead of him."
For almost 20 minutes after Mathis' second goal, no shot was taken from either side as the game turned into a defensive standstill. That changed five minutes later as Fallona scored for Rochester to force the 2-2 tie.
With the tie, the Golden Eagles sit with a 1-0-1 record while the Yellowjackets have an 0-2-1 record.
Brockport will host Clarkson next on Saturday for Senior Day. Kick-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. The Golden Eagles fell 2-1 to the Golden Knights 2-1 exactly a year ago from Saturday.
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