LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Adel Al Masude (Brussels, Belgium/GO Lyceum Gent) scored in the 12^th minute and Diesel Fiore (Las Vegas, NV/Bishop Gorman [Eastern Univ.]) posted a clean sheet in his first start as a Bronc as the Rider University men's soccer team blanked Niagara, 1-0, Saturday afternoon on Ben Cohen Field. With the win, the Broncs improve to 6-3-4 (3-2-2 MAAC), while the Purple Eagles dip to 2-8-3 (2-3-2 MAAC).

Al Masude opened the scoring in the 12^th minute. Zaki Alibou's (Meknes, Morocco/Meknes) thru ball played Babacar Diene (Thies, Senegal/CEM Ballabey) into the 18-yard box 1-v-1 with the goalkeeper. Diene eluded the keeper, but his shot was saved by a Niagara back. But Al Masude streaked in for the rebound and the 1-0 Rider lead at the 11:28 mark. The support would be all the Broncs' offense, defense and Fiore would need.

Rider generated 19 shots offensively, including six on target, for the game, outshooting Niagara, 19-7, including a 6-2 margin in shots on goal to dominate possession. Fiore made one save in each half to secure the shutout in his Broncs debut.

Quotes & Notes
"We've talked a lot lately about trying to get a goal early. When we played at home last time against Iona, we didn't have a good showing at the start of the game. When we're back home on Ben Cohen Field, we want to make sure that we're the ones in charge at the start of the game. And when you get the early goal, it allows you a little less pressure in the game to settle and play. So, we're always trying hunt the first goal of the game."

"I thought our back line did really well. We knew it was going to be a difficult game with how they play. Very direct, two big forwards they want to play into who are a handful. They get it wide and get crosses in. So our back four and our goalkeeper knew they had a lot of work to do today with balls that were going to be direct and on them pretty quickly and not built through the back. We talked a lot about winning second balls and collecting the second balls was going to be huge for us. – Rider Head Coach Chad Duernberger

- Rider owns a 14-8-4 edge in the all-time series with Niagara. The Broncs are 7-1-1 vs. Niagara since a loss in 2013. The Broncs and Purple Eagles played to a 2-2 draw last October 15 in Western New York.
- Fiore made two saves in the shutout. It marked the first time this season a goalkeeper other than sophomore Adam Salama (Ramle, Israel/Orthodox [Ottawa Univ.]) played in net for the Broncs.
- Fiore, Jack McGeechan (Allendale, NJ/Northern Highlands Regional), Martin Chladek (Prague, Czech Republic/Gymnazium Voderadska [Montevallo]), Sebastian Rojek (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills [Stony Brook]) and Luke Kirilenko (McKinney, TX/Impington International College [Virginia]) each played all 90 minutes.
- It was the 13th-straight 90-minute effort for Rojek to begin the season, while Salama and Ethan Shaw (Surf City, NJ/Northern Burlington [St. John's]) saw streaks of playing every minute for the Broncs this season end. Shaw played 48 minutes off the bench.

Broncs By The Numbers
- Al Masude's goal was his fourth of the year and his third in the Broncs' last three games. He has four goals, two assists and 10 points on the season, all good for second on the team.
- Diene collected his second assist of the year and now has a team-high 12 points.  
- The Broncs outshot Niagara, 19-7, including a 6-2 margin in shots on goal.  
- Both teams took five corner kicks.   
- The Broncs were shown one yellow card to two for Niagara.   

Up Next
- The Broncs return to action Wednesday, when they travel to Mount St. Mary's. Kickoff from Emmitsburg, MD, is scheduled for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.