Box Score Men's College Soccer
Canisius College 5, Rider University 2
LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ—Every storm runs out of rain.
Rider was on the storm, 5-0-1 in its last six games with a four-game winning streak, before losing to Canisius in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference played Wednesday in the pouring rain. “We had a good stretch,” said Rider head coach Charlie Inverso. “We went almost the entire month without losing a game."
On Wednesday Rider (10-5-1, 5-3-1 MAAC) scored in the first minute of play when sophomore Jose Aguinaga (Madrid, Spain) took a crossing pass from junior Rob Nardiello (Torquay, England) and scored his sixth goal of the season.
After that goal it was all Canisius (7-8-1, 4-5 MAAC). “After we scored the goal we stopped playing,” Inverso said.
The Griffs tied the game in the 33rd minute and took the lead less than eight minutes into the second half.
With Rider playing forward, the Griffs made it 5-1 before the Broncs scored with eight seconds left to play.
Rider junior Aaron Freeman (Piscataway, NJ) took a pass from junior Travis Nitti (Fort Lee, NJ/Bergen Catholic) and scored for the final score.
Canisius out-shot Rider 13-5, including 7-2 in shots on goal. “Today we were not good at all,” Inverso said. “It was very disappointing.”
Senior goalkeeper Ryan Baird (Plainfield, NJ) made two saves. Baird came into the game with a 7-1 record in the Rider net, leading the MAAC in save percentage.
The win was the fourth in a row for Canisius.
The Broncs were once again playing without two of its leading scorers, junior Christian Flath (Bargeshagen, Germany) and freshman Elliott Otmani (LaCiotat, France) due to injuries. Flath leads the MAAC in goals per game and points per game, compiling seven goals and 18 points in just 11 games. Otmani has five goals and 12 points in 14 games.
Rider lost 4-1 at Canisius last year. The Broncs defeated Canisius 2-1 the last time the Golden Griffins came to Lawrenceville, in 2013. Canisius now leads the all-time series 11-10.
Rider completes the regular season with a home game Saturday when the Broncs host Quinnipiac. “We were looking to lock down second place with a win today so now we put ourselves into a position where we pretty much have to win Saturday,” Inverso said. “It is a massive game for us.”
That will also be Senior Day, as the graduating seniors will be honored prior to the game.
-ru-
