Cleveland State midfielder Albert Portas recorded a hat trick to lead Cleveland State to a 4-3 victory over Canisius in collegiate men’s soccer action Monday at the Demske Field Complex.
Portas started the scoring early, landing the first goal of his hat trick in the sixth minute, assisted from a cross by Quinn Groves. Portas’ initial goal was quickly answered by the Golden Griffins as sophomore midfielder Daniel Longo knocked in his first goal of the season on a free kick in the eighth minute to tie the game at 1-1.
In the 30th minute, Cleveland State took the lead once more as Pablo Kawecki scored on a give-and-go pass from Bojan Kolevski. Canisius again fought back to equalize the game, with Daniel Longo sending a high-arching corner kick to Eliott Weber, who nimbly headed the ball for a goal.
Portas returned to the scoring column in the 48th minute, after two quick passes from Daniel Tragansic and Marco Rimac allowed him to get space and blast his second goal past Canisius goalkeeper Jack Petrie. After Canisus committed a red card foul on a break away, bringing their squad down to a 10-man front, Portas found the net for the third time and put Cleveland State up by two as the game wound down.
Despite being down a man, Canisius continued to fight, getting multiple shots off in the final 30 minutes of the game. One of these shots hit home, as senior Riley Wagner snuck a pass in the box to Glodie Mata, who struck for his first collegiate goal to bring Canisius back within striking distance.
The Griffs forwards put up a flurry of shots in the final five minutes attempting to tie the game, but were unable to find the equalizer as the Vikings escaped with the one-goal victory.
In his first collegiate start, Petrie earned himself seven saves for Canisius. Ryan Poling made the start for the Vikings at goalkeeper, making two saves in the contest.
GAME NOTES
- Monday’s game served as the ninth meeting between the two programs, and the first matchup since 2011
- Nine players earned points in this contest, with four players tallying multiple points during the high-scoring game
- Daniel Longo’s three points in one match was the first time a Canisius player has registed a goal and an assist in the same game since Oct. 12, 2019 when Troy Brady did it against St. Peter’s
- Cleveland State out-shot Canisius by a 16-10 margin for the contest, highlighted by a 12-6 advantage in the second half
- Both teams were awarded seven corner kicks during the contest
UP NEXT
Canisius will continue their 2023 campaign this Friday, traveling to North Eaton, Mass. to take on Stonehill at Skyhawk Field. Opening kickoff is slated for 4 p.m.
