Score: Rhode Island 5, UAlbany 3
 
Location: URI Soccer Complex in Kingston, R.I.
 
Records: UAlbany (1-5-2) | Rhode Island (4-0-4)
 
Short Story: UAlbany men's soccer falls in a high-scoring affair at Rhode Island, 5-3, just ahead of the start of conference play.
 
Key Stats

• Tiago Dias and Jeff Thielmann scored their first career goals as Great Danes
• Saad Faiz scored for the second time in three games
• Daniel Shannon recorded a career-high seven saves
• Rhode Island outshot UAlbany 18-9

Head Coach Trevor Gorman: "A mixed evening for us against a very good team.  In stretches of the game we were quite good.  Our spirit and togetherness and effort is always there.  Conceding goals at the wrong times is tough on the road.  We have lessons we are still learning but the attitude is positive and we are looking forward to conference play."
 
How it Happened

• Two goals were scored within the first four minutes of Tuesday's game, and just over 40 seconds apart.  First, Rhode Island got on the board off a corner kick that deflected into the Great Dane goal off a UAlbany defender.  Undeterred, UAlbany earned their own corner kick immediately afterwards, with Saad Faiz finding Tiago Dias for a header to tie the game at one before the four-minute mark.
• Rhode Island took a 2-1 lead in the 33rd minute when Jordan Koduah beat UAlbany goalkeeper Daniel Shannon.  The Rams, who outshot UAlbany 7-3 in the first half, took the same lead into halftime.
• The Rams went up by two goals, 3-1, shortly after the break.  Patrick Agyemang netted a quick turnaround shot past Shannon to extend Rhode Island's advantage.
• Faiz redirected a cross into the back of the Rhode Island net from Max Wilhelm and Domenic Baumann to cut Rhode Island's lead to one in the 69th minute.  It was Faiz's second goal in the last three games.
• Just like the beginning of the game, the end of the game featured a torrent of goals in quick succession.  In the 85th minute, Rhode Island's Edvin Akselsen scored to put the Rams up 4-2.  UAlbany responded by drawing a foul in the Rams' box in the 86th minute, just 23 seconds later.  Jeff Thielmann successfully converted the penalty kick, UAlbany's fourth of the season so far, to cut the lead back to one.
• Not to be outdone, the Rams' Rafa Villanueva scored his team's fifth goal of the game just 26 seconds after UAlbany's successful PK.  The Rams would hang on over the final three-plus minutes to win by the same score, 5-3.

Next: UAlbany opens America East play on the road at UMBC on September 24.