FLUSHING, N.Y. – Concluding their non-conference homestand Wednesday evening, the Queens College men's soccer team matched up against their third ranked team of the young season as they welcomed #8 regionally-ranked Southern Connecticut State University Owls to Knights field for the first time in program history.
Sophomore
Harry Cooke (Market Drayton, England) gave the Knights an early 1-0 advantage before the Owls tied the game 1-1 just five minutes into the second half. With the match tied 1-1 and heading into the final 15 minutes of play, Cooke's second goal of the match would ensure the Knights would end their homestand with a victory as they knocked off the Owls with a 2-1 victory Wednesday night.
For the second straight season, head coach
Frank Vertullo and the Knights have defeated a ranked Owls team improving their record to 2-0 against their regional foe.
With the win, the Knights improved their record to 1-2-1 on the season.
The win over the Owls earns Vertullo his 46
th career win in his sixth season on the Knights sidelines while tying former head coach Carl Christian who amassed 46 wins from 2010-2016.
Match Recap
Matching up against their second straight regionally-ranked foe, It was Vertullo's squad who came out on the pitch firing as they put the Owls defense under pressure very quickly.
Cooke and freshman
Andrew Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) would record back-to-back shots but their shots would be blocked by the Owls defense.
After senior
Nicholas Tagios (East Williston, N.Y.) shot on goal was sent away by the Owls goalie in the ninth minute of play, Queens defender junior
Nicolas Cifuentes Diaz (East Hampton, N.Y.) would win the ball back in the Knights attacking half.
As Diaz wconnected with senior
Adolfo Martinez Paquet (Sevilla, Spain) who would find Cooke on top of the 18 yards, the English native would waste no time in driving the ball up for a right foot blast past the Owls goalie to give Queens an early 1-0 lead in the 10
th minute of play as Cooke tallied his second goal of the season.
After taking the early lead for the second time in three games, the Knights defense would be put under pressure by the visitors.
Junior goalie
Juan Cruz Ladino (Cali, Colombia) earning his first career start in the net would be called on for a timely save in the 19
th minute of play.
The Owls would continue to threaten as in the 29
th minute of play as they earned a corner kick. But Ladino would once again deny the Owls the game-tying goal with a timely uppercut save near the crossbar.
Despite being outshot 7-5 in the first half, Cooke's early goal and two saves from Ladino would ensure the Knights took a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
But in the second half, It would be the Owls who would knot the game at 1-1 in the 50
th minute of play as the ball tinged off the post and evaded a diving Ladino through the left side.
Looking to respond, both sides would continue to battle in search of the game-winning goal.
After Johnson drew a foul in the midfield in the 57
th minute of play, senior
Leo Pinto (Forest Hills, N.Y.) raced past the Owls defense before his shot sailed out left.
An offside would cancel another counterattack from the Knights in the 60
th minute of play before Cooke was denied a brace in the 63
rd minute of play.
Queens would continue to keep the Owls away from their attacking half before sophomore defender
Andreas Charalambous (Limassol, Cyprus) drew a foul in the 76
th minute of play.
A long ball from Charalambous would find Pinto who would connect with Cooke on top of the 18-yard box. It would be another quick drive from Cooke before the sophomore completed a left foot chip over the Owls goalie to give the Knights a 2-1 lead in the 76
th minute of play as the English native recorded his first Knights brace in four matches.
Cooke and his defense would play out the final 13 minutes without any danger in their defensive end earning the Knights their first win of the season and Vertullo's 46
th win in charge of the Knights.
Match Highlights
- Cooke recorded his first brace and team-leading second and third goal of the year to extend his points tally to six on the season.
- Cooke tallied his first career game-winning in goal in Knights uniform.
- Dias and Paquet combined for Cooke's first goal as the duo recorded their third career assist.
- On Cooke's second goal, Charalambous recorded his first career assist, while Pinto tallied his sixth career assist.
- Making his first career start in goal, Ladino made three saves in the net earning his first career win.
- Both teams were even on shots (11-11) and shots on goal (4-4) on the evening with the Owls holding an 8-2 corner kick advantage.
Next Match
Head coach
Frank Vertullo and the Knights open East Coast Conference play on Saturday (Sept. 16) afternoon in Buffalo, N.Y. as they match up against the Wildcats of Daemen University. Kickoff is set for 1:30 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).
