New York, NY – The SUNY Cobleskill men's soccer team came up just short on Friday afternoon as Pratt Institute scored in the 88th minute to hand the Fighting Tigers a 1-0 road loss at Icahn Stadium.
In a defensive battle, senior
Spencer Reisman (Youngstown, NY) led Cobleskill with three shots, including one on target, while first-year
Michael Neaton registered the Tigers' other shot on goal. The backline of
Samuel Spraker (Broadalbin-Perth, NY),
Austin Galley (Edmeston, NY),
Andres Hernandez (Troy, NY) and
Timmy Kensell (Monroe, NY) turned in a strong performance, limiting the Cannoneers to five shots on target and keeping the match scoreless for nearly 89 minutes.
First-year goalkeeper
Sean Hanrahan (Elmira, NY) made four saves to keep Cobleskill in the match. Pratt goalkeeper Hayden Pettit finished with one save.
Pratt held a 9-5 advantage in total shots and a 5-2 edge in shots on goal. The Cannoneers also recorded five corner kicks compared to three for Cobleskill, while committing 13 fouls to the Tigers' five.
Cobleskill came out on the front foot and nearly grabbed an early lead inside the opening two minutes.
Gavin McEnroe (Burlington Flats, NY) was played into the penalty area before the ball fell to Neaton, whose effort toward goal was cleared off the line by a Pratt defender. Reisman later tested Pettit from distance, forcing the goalkeeper to push the attempt away for a corner. From there, both defenses settled in and kept clear-cut chances to a minimum as the match went into halftime scoreless.
The defensive battle continued throughout the second half, with neither side able to find a breakthrough for much of the period. The match appeared headed for a scoreless draw before Pratt struck at the 88:29 mark. Lucca Novi latched onto a bouncing ball played in behind the Cobleskill backline and lifted his finish over Hanrahan and just under the crossbar for the late game-winner.
Up Next:
The Fighting Tigers return to action on Sunday, September 6, when they host Yeshiva University at 2 p.m. in their home opener.
