Aug. 20, 2011
Bronx, N.Y. -
The Fordham men's soccer team played to a scoreless tie with NJIT under the lights on Saturday, August 20, at Jack Coffey Field. The draw concluded the preseason portion of the Rams schedule, and the team went 1-0-1; with a win over Monroe College complementing Saturday's level score.
The game started off in earnest for Fordham, as the Rams pressed the issue on offense early. In the eighth minute, senior forward Aaron Markowitz put a shot on net that was stopped by Highlanders' goalie, Adriano Deabreu. Fordham had another strong scoring opportunity in the twenty-third minute as senior midfielder, John Niyonsaba, blasted a shot that went over the crossbar for a goal kick. He had a similar opportunity in the forty-third minute, but also lifted the shot high and out-of-bounds. NJIT's best scoring chance of the game came a minute later. In the forty-fourth minute, Emeka Nwachukwu got open on the left side of the pitch and blasted a shot to the right side of the Fordham goal. Senior netminder, Ryan Meara, dove to his right to make a terrific save. The game went into halftime with no score.
The second half same the Rams make a slew of substitutions, one of which included freshman midfield, Jack-Tim Murphy. Murphy's presence sparked the offense and led to several scoring chances. Julian Nagel, also a halftime insertion, had a shot on goal in the fiftieth minute that was parried by Deabreu. Eight minutes later, Murphy blasted a hard liner that went hide and wide of the net, resulting in a goal kick. Finally, in the seventy-second minute, Niyonsaba lifted a pass that found the right leg of Murphy and his shot was turned aside by the Highlanders' goalie. Six minutes later, it was Nagel that blasted a shot that was just high and wide of the net. The game ended in a scoreless tie.
As a team, the Rams out shot NJIT, 12-2. Meara recorded the lone save, and Nagel led the Rams with three shots. Murphy, Niyonsaba and Tim Richardson each lofted two balls at net, and Fordham tallied nine corner kicks to just one for the Highlanders.
The Fordham men's soccer team will open the 2011 regular season on Saturday, August 27, against the University of Hartford. The game, in East Hartford, Connecticut, is scheduled to being at 7:00 PM. The Rams open up at home on August 31 against Lehigh.
