Two second-half goals and a shutout performance from goalkeeper
Zach Amato lifted the St. Lawrence University men's soccer team to a 2-0 victory over Plattsburgh State in its season opener on Tuesday afternoon at Sandy MacAllaster Field.
The Saints improved to 1-0 on the season, while the Cardinals fell to 0-1.
"It was a real team performance today," said
Mike Toshack. "The guys grinded out a win, and sometimes you have to do that when the ball isn't rolling your way, and things aren't as smooth as you want. But I was really proud of the desire, commitment, and everything that they put into getting the eventual goals and winning against a very well-coached team by Chris Taylor in Plattsburgh. Now we move forward with the two goals and a clean sheet from
Zach Amato, who was excellent today in all areas of the game, which was really encouraging. Now we just try to recover, and we look forward to going to Geneseo on Friday."
Both teams generated chances in the opening half, though neither side could find a breakthrough.
Amato was called into action early, making key saves on shots from Rocco Ruscitto, Oliver Filip and Xavier Kamba to keep the match scoreless.
The Cardinals nearly took the lead in the 28th minute when they were awarded a penalty kick, but Davis Lopez's attempt rang off the left post, allowing the Saints to escape the threat.
St. Lawrence increased its offensive pressure after halftime and began creating quality scoring chances.
Grant Gilmer,
Baker Diaz,
Kenneth Mejia Lopez,
Jack Buyers,
Eric Edmonds and
Nicholas Petrone all forced saves from Plattsburgh State goalkeeper Matthew D'Ippolito during a relentless second-half push.
The breakthrough finally came in the 75th minute. Following sustained pressure from the Scarlet and Brown, Petrone received a pass from Gilmer and fired a shot on goal that was stopped by the keeper. The rebound fell to Diaz, who buried his first goal of the season for a 1-0 lead.
The Saints continued to control play and added an insurance goal late in regulation. After entering the match just minutes earlier,
Kyle Silverman collected a Diaz pass and immediately centered the ball to fellow first-year
Jack Buyers, who kissed a right-footed strike off the inside of the left post and into the net to make it 2-0.
The goal was the first of Buyers' collegiate career, while the assist was the first career point for Silverman.
Amato finished with four saves to earn the shutout, while D'Ippolito made seven stops for the Cardinals.
St. Lawrence held advantages in shots (18-10) and shots on goal (9-4), while Plattsburgh State led 10-3 in corner kicks.
The Scarlet and Brown will look to keep things rolling on Friday as they travel to Geneseo, N.Y., for a 7 p.m. matchup against SUNY Geneseo.
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