MOON, Pa. - The Fairleigh Dickinson University men's soccer team defeated the Robert Morris Colonials on the road Sunday afternoon by a final score of 1-0. The win moves the Knights to 8-4-1 (2-2 NEC) on the season. FDU returns to action October 22nd when they host Central Connecticut at University Stadium.
Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite earned his first clean sheet of the season for his second win of the year. Jamie Leddy provided the goalscoring for the Knights, his first of the season.
"I thought we played very well today," head coach Seth Roland said. "In the first half we were unlucky not score a couple more goals as we really had them on their heels. But they weathered the storm, and the second half was a back-and-forth affair. We created a few more dangerous opportunities but just couldn't stick another one away."
Indeed, the first half started with a dominating performance from FDU, as the Knights came out firing on all cylinders offensively to start the match. Winning challenges on loose balls at mid field to maintain possession and put the pressure on the Robert Morris back line, the Knights were relentless on the attack.
FDU peppered the Colonials with a flurry of shots on goal, as Daniel Lasarte, Ahu Obhakhan, and Alvaro Rubio each earned quality looks at the net that were gobbled up by keeper Winter Fondi. Moments later, Diego Arribas curled a perfect strike around the RMU defensive line off a set-piece, however Fondi was in position to make the save once again.
The chances continued to flow for the Knights, however, and soon after Arribas' chance Jamie Leddy capitalized on the offensive onslaught. Finding the back of the net after winning a high challenge on a corner from Arribas, Leddy redirected a slick header past the outstretched arms of Fondi to put the Knights up 1-0 just 11 minutes into the game.
"Leddy scored a very good goal off a nice corner kick feed from Diego. Jamie's been playing very well at center back, and doesn't get many headlines because he's one of those guys that just goes about his business and does his job very professionally. So it's nice to see him grab the headlines for once," Roland said.
Spurred on by the early tally, the blistering pace of the Knights continued as Fondi was forced to make several more tough stops. By the time the dust had settled on the first half, FDU enjoyed an impressive 13-2 advantage in shots to go along with their 1-0 lead on the scoreboard.
The Colonials would finding their footing and answer with a few chances of their own to start the second, however.
After Labovitz and Arribas tuned a pair towards the RMU net, the Colonials emerged on the counter.
Finding himself with a bit of time and space, Jake Cooper fired a high, hard strike at the FDU net that would have sailed into the upper left-hand corner had it not been for an excellent diving save from keeper Waite, who stretched out just enough to get a hand on the strike and deflect it over the cross bar.
RMU's continued to press the issue, however FDU was composed in defense, stifling the Robert Morris attack through the midfield and along the sidelines, doing an efficient job of preventing the Robert Morris attack from entering the FDU end with stable possession.
Despite a handful of other chances, the Knights composure never wavered defensively, as FDU was able to keep things locked down and hold on for the 1-0 victory.
"Everyone competed hard and expended every last ounce of energy throughout the entire weekend. It's not easy to come away with two wins on the road at Saint Francis and Robert Morris, but the guys really earned it," Roland said.
