Men's Soccer Drops 2-1 Decision at New Hampshire
BOX SCORE
DURHAM, N.H. – University at Albany men's soccer (3-6-5, 1-2 AE) suffered its second one-goal conference road loss on Wednesday night, falling 2-1 at New Hampshire (5-6-1, 1-2 AE). The Great Danes return for two consecutive home games on Oct. 18 against UMBC and Oct. 24 against Stony Brook.
“We battled in a back and forth game tonight,” said head coach Trevor Gorman. “Credit to New Hampshire for finding the winning goal late. We're looking forward to returning home for three of our final four regular-season games.”
Both teams looked sluggish to open the game, as the Purple & Gold struggled to get the ball through the midfield on the ground or in the air early on.
In the 12th minute, Rozzano broke through the left side on a quick counter off of a UNH turnover. The sophomore found Pedro Espindola just inside the 18, but Espindola had his shot blocked as it left his foot.
Espindola kept working in the midfield, connecting on a give-and-go with Afonso Pinheiro. The sophomore midfielder fired low but the attempt was saved on the bounce.
New Hampshire began pushing forward off of intercepted UAlbany passes in the midfield, with the effort eventually paying off. UNH connected on a header off of a service on the right side, originating from near midfield.
The Great Danes went into the break looking for a comeback effort for just the second time all season.
Rozzano controlled a cross by Keith Traut in the 55th minute for a look on goal. The junior midfielder put the ball on his left foot for a grounder that resulted in a save.
Ivan Martinez made a play on another Traut service shortly after, forcing the UNH keeper off his line. Leo Melgar put a shot on net but it was blocked by the Wildcat back line.
Martinez took advantage of a UNH defensive miscommunication in the 60th minute, playing Pinheiro on the right side off the turnover. Pinheiro fired a shot that was saved at the six-yard box, and a UNH defender cleared out the rebound attempt by Martinez.
With its chances stacking up, Melgar flicked a cross on with 27 minutes left in regulation. The sophomore found Pinheiro at the 12-yard mark for the header, the freshman's fifth goal of the season.
Despite appearing to retain the momentum advantage, UNH came down the field to re-take the lead 2-1 with 15 minutes left in regulation.
A shot deflected over the crossbar on the save from 20 yards out by Espindola set up UAlbany's first and only corner kick with 7:43 left.
With time winding down, Mattos played a ball up into the cluster of UAlbany and UNH players in the 18-yard box. Brandon Wilson headed a shot on goal, but UNH made the save to secure the 2-1 win.
UAlbany (3-6-5, 1-2 AE) will face a well-rested UMBC (6-4-2, 2-0 AE) squad on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. The Retrievers were slated to face Binghamton on Wednesday night, but the game was rescheduled due to impending bad weather in the mid-Atlantic region. Saturday's contest will mark a re-match of the 2013 America East Semifinals.
