AMHERST, N.Y. – Opening East Coast Conference play in Amherst, the Queens College men's soccer team matched up against the Wildcats of Daemen University at Karrer Field Saturday afternoon.
After a scoreless first half, freshman
Andrew Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) would head open the lone goal of the match as the Knights earned a 1-0 shutout victory over Daemen to open ECC play on a high note.
With the win, Queens improved their overall record to 2-2-1, 1-0 in ECC play, and earned their first shutout of the season.
Saturday's win over the Wildcats improves the Knights record to 8-2 against their conference foe.
With the Knights victory, head coach
Frank Vertullo earned his 47
th victory in charge of the men's soccer program to move into first place as the All-Time Coaching Career Wins leader in program history.
Match Recap
It was the Knights who came out of the gate firing as sophomore
Harry Cooke (Market Drayton, England) registered the first shot in the seventh minute of play but would be denied by the Wildcats defense.
But the Wildcats would control the next half hour of play as junior goalie
Juan Cruz Ladino (Cali, Colombia) made four saves to deny the Wildcats any scoring chance.
As Ladino and his defense kept Daemen from scoring, Queens would attempt to take control of the midfield as they were outshot 10-1 through the first 36
th minutes of play.
After a Wildcats shot sailed out left, Queens on the counterattack would respond as freshman
Jason Udo's (Bronx, N.Y.) shot was blocked before an offside flag canceled the rebound shot for the visitors.
Entering the final five minutes before halftime, senior
Leo Pinto (Forest Hills, N.Y.) and sophomore
Kevin Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) shots would sail wide as both teams went into halftime with the match still scoreless.
After being outshot 11-4 in the first half, the Knights would regroup and quickly put the Daemen defense under pressure notching three shots in a row.
As Queens defense continued to prevent the Wildcats from scoring, Queens would take a 1-0 lead in the 61
st minute of play on a set piece.
Earning a corner kick, senior
Adolfo Martinez Paquet (Sevilla, Spain) would deliver as he curved the ball near the five-yard box for freshman
Andrew Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) to head home the ball past the Daemen's goalie for a 1-0 lead.
Having taken the lead, Ladino and the Knights would shut out the Wildcats over the next 29 minutes of play to open ECC play on a winning note.
Match Highlights
- Rookie Johnson recorded his first career game-winning goal.
- Paquet recorded his second assist in a row and fourth of his career.
- In goal, Ladino recorded a career-best five saves to earn his first shutout of the season.
- Ladino improves his overall record to 2-0 on the season.
- The Wildcats held an 18-13 shots margin and 5-4 shots on goal margin.
- Queens outshout Daemen 9-7 in the second.
Next Match
Head coach
Frank Vertullo and the Knights return to non-conference play on Wednesday (Sept. 20) evening as they travel to Philadelphia, PA with a matchup against the Tigers of Holy Family University. Kickoff is set for 7:00 pm.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), and Instagram (qcknightsny), men's soccer (qcmsoccer).
