NIAGARA UNIV. — A goal in the 31st minute by the Siena Saints put the Purple Eagles men’s soccer team in a first-half hole during Wednesday afternoon’s match at Niagara Field. Niagara had two stellar chances to find the tying goal late in the second half, but the Saints held on to preserve the one-goal lead through 90 minutes of play.
Niagara held a 3-1 advantage in total shots in the opening 15 minutes against Siena as both teams battled evenly for momentum. Siena gained offensive momentum as the first half passed its midway point. Just past the 30-minute mark, Siena’s Uros Antic fed a through ball to Junior Rosero to the right of the goal box. Rosero beat Niagara’s Steve Casey far to the left side as his shot hugged the ground to give Siena the 1-0 lead.
Niagara was held without a shot the rest of the first half, but came out on the offensive to start the second half. Bautista Pedezert had a shot blocked around the 51-minute mark before Shiquan Lowe had a header saved off of a set piece. Casey, who made five saves in the second half, had to make two consecutive denials against Siena’s Rosero and Conor McGlynn in the 64th minute, and he turned both shots away. Borna Juracic had the best chance of the game for Niagara in the 74th minute. Set up just to the right of the goal, his shot beat Siena’s Aleksa Radosavljevic far to the left side, but it was blocked by a defender and turned away. Niagara had one final golden chance in the 88th minute to knot the game at one goal apiece. In the Siena goal box, headers by Adel Rahman and Shiquan Lowe got the ball over to a wide-open Sergio Lujan on the far side, but Lujan’s header was just off the mark and high over the net.
NU Head Coach Bill Boyle said, “This game was there for the taking and we had our chances late, but couldn’t find that one conversion to get our team started. There is still a long way to go in conference play, and we look forward to getting back on track Saturday.”
Niagara hosts Monmouth on Saturday during the university’s Alumni Weekend. Opening kick between the Purple Eagles and Hawks is slated for 1 p.m. at Niagara Field.
from PurpleEagles.com via IFTTT
