LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – For the second-straight game, the Rider University men's soccer team erased a two-goal deficit, this time earning a 4-3 win over Fairfield Wednesday night on Ben Cohen Field.
Taner Bay (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas),
Zaki Alibou (Meknes, Morocco, Meknes),
Sergio Aguinaga (Madrid, Spain/Antonio Dominguez Ortiz) all scored in the second half as the Broncs improved to 6-5-2 (3-2-1 MAAC). The Stags fall to 4-7-2 (3-3-1 MAAC) with the loss.
The Stags built a 2-0 lead with a pair of Jonathan Filipe goals in the 39
th and 43
rd minutes. The first goal came on a penalty kick after the Broncs were whistled for a handball in the box. Less than five minutes later, Rasmus Sorensen Rejnhold and Santiago Gonzalez connected passes to Filipe, who finished inside the box past Rider goalkeeper
Guillaume Veinante (Bayonne, France/Faculte des métier de Rennes) for the two-goal cushion.
Still trailing 2-0 at the half, the Broncs got the first goal back in the 48
th minute as Bay was awarded a PK following a Stags handball in the box. In the 61
st minute, Alibou made a strong individual effort to get to the top of the 18-yard box and rip a shot off the fingertips of Fairfield keeper William Marment and into the right upper 90 to tie the game at 2-2.
Less than two minutes later in the 63
rd minute, Aguinaga's corner kick found the back of the net for a 3-2 Rider lead, the Broncs' first of the game. Rider wasn't finished, however, as Peterson finished at the doorstep off after Aguinaga beat his defender at the goal line before crossing to the senior back. Fairfield wouldn't go away, scoring on a Thomas Drillen tally in the 83
rd minute. But the Broncs would hold on for the 4-3 win.
Quotes & Notes
"I think what we have is tremendous team spirit and it showed tonight. Two games in a row, we went down 2-0 and fought back. That's a lot of character. Essentially we had eight guys who started tonight that were first-year players. It takes a while to build this chemistry and trust. Clearly it was there tonight. I was proud of them." –
Rider Head Coach Charlie Inverso
- Rider cut Fairfield's lead in the all-time series to 20-10-3. The Broncs are now unbeaten in their last four against the Stags, winning two and drawing twice.
- The Broncs also erased a 2-0 deficit this past Saturday against Saint Peter's, earning a 3-3 tie.
- With four games remaining in league play, the Broncs improved their positioning in the MAAC standings to a three-way tie for fourth place with Fairfield and Iona at 10 points. However, the Broncs have played one fewer game than both the Stags and Gaels.
- Veinante made three saves for the Broncs.
- No cautions were issued in the game.
- Seven Broncs played all 90 minutes – Veinante,
Lenny Cidolit (Montpellier, France/Montpellier Univ.), Aguinaga, Bay,
Guillaume Sarrabayrouse (Toulose, France/Pierre Paul Riquet),
Brendan Fischer (Concord, NC/Hickory Ridge) and
Tom Skrocki (Haverford, PA).
Broncs By The Numbers
- Rider is now 5-0-1 when scoring three goals or more and 4-0-0 when scoring four goals.
- Alibou entered the game with a tie in the league lead in goals and scored his ninth of the year. However, Iona's Camil Azzam Ruiz scored twice today in a win over Siena to give him 10 on the year and also push ahead of Alibou (22 points) with 23 points.
- With a goal and an assist, Aguinaga now has three goals and eight assists on the year, good for 14 points. His eight assists are second-most in the league.
- Bay's goal was his second of the year.
- Peterson found the back of the net for the first time as a Bronc.
- For the game, Rider outshot Fairfield, 14-10. Both teams put six shots on target.
- Both teams took seven corner kicks.
Up Next
- The Broncs return to action Saturday, when they travel to Canisius. Kickoff from Demske Sports Complex is scheduled for 1 p.m. on ESPN3.
