TEANECK, N.J. – Two second-half goals and stout defensive play down the stretch helped the Fairleigh Dickinson men's soccer team defeat NJIT at home Tuesday night by a score of 2-1.
The Knights (4-2) took more chances at goal in a scoreless first half but did not take long to provide the first score of the game, with junior
Rocky Garretson netting his second career goal in the 54th minute to put FDU out in front. Sophomore
Joshua Ferreira added an insurance goal in the 74th minute, but the Highlanders (2-1-3) struck back with a tally with only eight minutes left.
FDU, however, turned away the NJIT attack over the final eight minutes, withstanding two more shot attempts and a frantic scramble on a corner kick try in the closing seconds to come away with the home win.
"It was a very intense game against a good team," head coach
Seth Roland said after the match. "I thought we showed a lot of heart, we played hard, and we possessed the ball well for most of the game. We created chances in the first half and then second half created the goals, two great goals by two guys who came into the game as subs. Credit to our guys for being focused from the opening whistle to the final whistle."
Junior goalkeeper
Jahmali Waite, who was named
NEC Player of the Week earlier in the day, made two first-half saves, and his presence affected nine more NJIT shots in the second half.
Waite saved the first shot of the match from NJIT in the ninth minute, and freshman
Jared Dillon provided a quick counter opportunity for FDU by bursting up the field to make his way behind the NJIT defense. His shot, however, from the left side just missed cutting inside the right post to roll out of play.
The Knights kept pushing on the attack and came close to a goal in the 26th minute, with senior
Daniel Lasarte putting a clean shot on goal that was kicked out by a NJIT defender, and Dillon's header off the rebound was saved just in front of the goal line by Highlander goalkeeper Samuel Reisgys. Lasarte again directed a ball on target in the 33rd minute that was saved, leaving both teams scoreless through the first 45 minutes.
After three Highlander shots to start the second half, the Knights got going on the attack. Sophomore
Ideal Shefqeti gathered a loose ball at midfield and lofted a long pass to Garretson, hitting the junior in stride. Garretson then maneuvered around the NJIT keeper and placed his shot into the net for the go-ahead score.
Arribas then in the 74th minute helped create the second FDU goal, evading defenders down near the end line before passing into Ferreira in the middle. The sophomore took one touch with his left foot before drilling a hard shot past the diving keeper and into the back-left corner for his second goal of the season, making it 2-0 Knights.
NJIT later tallied a goal in the 82nd minute, with Alejandro Rabell finding the back of the net to make it 2-1. The Knight back line of senior
Quentie Kyeremateng, sophomore
Anthony Herbert, freshman
Jared Subarsky and Garretson, however, stood strong as NJIT continued to press for an equalizer, only allowing two difficult shots in the final eight minutes.
The Highlanders did earn one last corner kick attempt in the final minute, sending a ball that was headed out by the Knight defense to help preserve the victory.
Senior
Wojciech Piwowarczyk made his first start of the season, playing 62 minutes on the back line along with junior
Kaskile Zawadi, who factored in with 71 minutes of play on defense. The Knight defense held NJIT's leading scorer with six goals in five matches, Rene White, scoreless in earning the win.
"We stayed disciplined enough to prevent them from tying us, and that's not an easy thing to do because they had all the momentum," Roland added. "Wojciech who played an unbelieveable 62 minutes had to come off and Q went into the fire and did a great job. Rene White is a great striker having scored in five straight games, and we shut him down. We wanted to make sure we were aware of him at all times."
The win is Knights' second straight at home and third in their last four matches overall.
"It got a little hectic, but we still kept our focus and poise, and that's important," Roland said. "It was an intense battle, and the guys deserved to come out on top."
FDU returns to action on Saturday when it hosts another in-state rival, Princeton, at 7 p.m. at University Stadium.
Bogota Savings Bank is the presenting sponsor of the 2019 men's soccer season.
