Men's College Soccer

Rider University 3, NJIT 3 (2 o.t.)

NEWARK, NJ—There are two old expressions in soccer. One is that 'goals follow goals' and another is that 'a 2-0 lead is never safe'.

Unfortunately for Rider, both of those expressions came into play Wednesday night, as the Broncs built a 2-0 lead before having to battle back for a 3-3 tie at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

“NJIT is a good team,” said Rider head coach Charlie Inverso.  “This tie is not the worst result. I'm disappointed that we did not come out with a win but there are a lot of positives to take from it.”

Rider (3-1-2) junior Justin Veltri (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest) scored with 11 minutes left in regulation on an assist from sophomore Zach Bond (Holmdel, NJ) to tie the score at 3-3, sending the game into overtime. “Bond split the defense and Veltri found a nice little gap and tucked it away,” Inverso said. 

It was Veltri's second goal of the season and his fourth in 22 career games. “He was dangerous a couple of times tonight and he got an important goal for us,” Inverso said. 'It was good that we made the comeback and tied it up. NJIT is a very good defensive team.”

The Highlanders just shutout nationally ranked Navy on Saturday.

The Broncs took a 2-0 lead before NJIT (4-2-2) came back to take a 3-2 lead. “As soon as we went up 2-0 they came right back and scored,” Inverso said. “I'm not sure how long it was.”

Try 59 seconds. 'Goals follow goals.'

NJIT cut the lead to 2-1 with 15 minutes left in the first half and tied the score at 2-2 with three minutes left in the first half.

“The old expression that a 2-0 lead is never safe sure was true tonight,” Inverso said. “When we went up 2-0 it was like a curse. Their first goal was their only attack of the night up until that point, and it gave them confidence.”

Rider sophomore Warren Holmes (Stoke on Trent, England) scored on a corner kick from sophomore Christian Flath (Bargeshagen, Germany) to take a 1-0 lead.

Junior Florian Valot (Monaco, France) scored on a PK to give Rider a 2-0 lead.  “When you take a 2-0 lead you have to be really solid in the back,” Inverso said. “You can't give up a goal. They scored a very good goal, and it let them back in the game.”

NJIT took a 3-2 lead 1:33 into the second half.

Both teams had 13 shots.

Rider junior Ryan Baird (Plainfield, NJ/St. Peter's Prep) made three saves in 65 minutes and allowed one goal. “Baird has been looking pretty sharp in practice,” Inverso said of his Rutgers transfer. “He was injured early on but now he is healthy. He made a huge save at the end of regulation.”

Sophomore David Pastuna (Robbinsville, NJ) played the first half and made one save. “We feel we have three good keepers,” Inverso said.  “Neither one of the goals Dave gave up were his fault.”

Rider lost 2-1 to NJIT last year in Lawrenceville.

Rider and NJIT have now met five times, with Rider holding a 2-1-2 advantage in the series that began in 2007. The last time Rider defeated NJIT was 2010.

Rider entered the game ranked fourth in the nation in scoring, with 14 goals in five games. “It looked like their plan was to sit back defensively and pack things in and look to counter on us,” Inverso said of the Highlanders.  “Despite that compactness that they had defensively we still scored two goals.  That's good. It has been a long time since teams have played defensive against us. That's a good sign. We're still putting up goals.”

Rider plays at St. Francis Brooklyn Saturday. “Tonight was good preparation for us before we start conference play next week,” Inverso said. “We get another crack at it on Saturday. St. Francis was in the NCAA tournament last year, so this will be another tough pre-conference tune-up for us. We're looking forward to it.”

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