The No. 4 St. Lawrence University men's soccer team suffered its first defeat of the season on Saturday afternoon, falling 3-0 to Union College on Saturday afternoon at College Park Field in Schenectady, N.Y.
The Saints moved to 10-1-4 overall and 5-1-3 in Liberty League play, while the Garnet Chargers improved to 9-8-2 overall and 3-5-1 in conference action.
Earlier in the week, the Saints secured the regular season title for the first time since the 2022 season, and secured home field throughout next week's playoffs.
Union struck first in the 14th minute when Kofi Sarfoh converted a penalty kick to give the home side an early 1-0 advantage.
The Garnet Chargers doubled their lead just over eight minutes later. Joseph Carofano found the back of the net in the 22nd minute off an assist from Shane Crowley, putting Union in front 2-0.
St. Lawrence generated a handful of opportunities to respond in the opening half.
Neel Mitra fired a shot wide in the 29th minute, and
Juliano Masella put a shot on goal in the closing seconds of the half, but Union goalkeeper Dmitri Wild-Arons made the save as the Saints went into the break trailing by two.
The Scarlet and Brown looked to climb back into the match after halftime.
Kyle Reddish had an early second-half chance, and the Saints continued to push possession forward in search of a breakthrough.
Union added an insurance marker in the 74th minute when Luke Danile scored his third goal of the season to extend the lead to 3-0.
St. Lawrence continued to attack over the final 20 minutes.
Sammy Bothwell forced a save from Wild-Arons in the 78th minute, while the Saints earned a pair of late corner kicks and generated several additional shot attempts, but could not solve the Union goalkeeper.
The Saints finished with a 10-7 advantage in shots, including a 7-3 edge in the second half, but Union held a 3-2 advantage in shots on goal and converted all three of its chances on target. Wild-Arons finished with two saves to earn the shutout.
St. Lawrence earned two corner kicks in the final seven minutes and held a 2-1 edge in corners after halftime, but the Garnet Chargers were able to close out the victory.
With the regular season title in tow, the Scarlet and Brown have earned a first round bye in next week's Liberty League playoffs, and will host a semifinal match on Friday, November 6 on Sandy MacAllaster Field.
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