TROY, N.Y. -- The SUNY Oneonta men's soccer team secured a 1-0 win on the road over RPI, Saturday afternoon, with a crucial goal in the second half. Senior
Owen Siegel (Liberty, N.Y./Liberty) recorded the game-winning goal in the 66th minute off a pass from junior
Zach Rabadi (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.). Junior
AJ Lucas (Beacon, N.Y.) finished with three saves in the shutout as the Red Dragons improved to 4-1-2 overall while the Engineers dropped to 2-5-0 this season.
"It was a tough match, but we had a good spell in the second half and Owen scored a brilliant curling effort," said head coach
Iain Byrne.
In the late 65th minute, Rabadi stole a pass from the Engineers at midfield, dribbled the ball up the field, and passed it to the left sideline to Siegel. The senior captain got the ball from 30 yards out, took a few touches towards the center of the field and used his right foot to curl the ball past one defender and a diving Such into the far side of the goal. Rabadi's assist on the goal was his fourth of the season which leads the team.
Siegel had a chance earlier to break the tie in the 58th minute, as he sprinted for the ball inside the penalty box and took a shot on net before a sliding RPI defender collided with him, however Such kept the ball in front of his body.
Both sides had opportunities in the first half, but Lucas and Such kept the match scoreless. Junior
Sam Rogers (Broadalbin, N.Y./Broadalbin-Perth) and senior
Luigi Prosperi (Lynbrook, N.Y./Lynbrook) had a shot on target in the 2nd and 29th minutes, respectively, while Lucas made all three stops in the final 15 minutes of the first half.
Such finished with five saves for the Engineers. Oneonta outshot RPI 14-9 overall, 6-3 on target, and had seven corner kicks in the second half for an 8-3 advantage.
The Red Dragons return home to host Hamilton on Wednesday, September 25, at 4 pm.
