ONEONTA, N.Y. -- The Oneonta men's soccer team wrapped up the regular season with a 1-nil SUNYAC win against Morrisville Saturday afternoon, as the team recognized and celebrated the careers of their seniors for Senior Day at Red Dragon Field. Senior
Milton Mancias Magana (Mamaroneck, N.Y./Mamaroneck) netted the game-winning goal midway through the first half, while junior
James Cintron (Poughkeepsie, NY/Roy C. Ketcham) recorded four saves for his seventh shutout of the season. The Red Dragons finished the regular season 10-4-3 overall with a 5-2-2 record in the SUNYAC, while the Mustangs ended the year with a record of 5-8-3 overall and 2-5-2 in the conference.
Following the conference's tiebreaking system, Oneonta earned the fifth seed in the SUNYAC tournament, and they will travel to New Paltz for their first-round matchup on Saturday, November 1.
"It's always good to finish the season with a win, particularly on Senior Day," said head coach
Iain Byrne. "We created chances, but our finishing needs to improve."
In the 20th minute, Mancias Magana got the ball from senior
Dillon Kelly (Wappingers Falls, N.Y./Beacon) on the right side of the field. He dribbled it between a couple of defenders, then was tripped at the top of the box and awarded a free kick. On the free kick, Mancias Magana fired the ball just past the left side of the five-man Mustang wall and through the hands of the keeper for his fifth goal of the season.
While they held onto the lead, the Red Dragons kept possession of the ball for most of the match and created multiple chances for another goal, but they could not get one past Ronaldo Fatolou. Mancias Magana and senior
Sam Rogers (Broadalbin, N.Y./Broadalbin-Perth) each recorded four shots on goal, while seniors
Zach Rabadi (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay) and
Luigi Prosperi (Lynbrook, N.Y./Lynbrook) both registered two shots on net. Kelly had a shot in the 39th minute, while senior
Joe Holder (Greenwood Lake, N.Y./Warwick), junior
Imari Harris (Kingston, NY/Kingston), and sophomores
Tommy Kliampas (South Huntington, NY/Walt Whitman) and
Nico Loaiza (Brentwood, N.Y./Brentwood) all recorded a shot on goal in the second half, however they could not get by Fatolou, who finished with 16 saves.
Cintron's four saves all happened in the second half en route to the team's win. He made his first save with no problem in the 56th minute, then he had to punch out a corner kick that started to bend in towards the net in the 71st. After he stopped a slow grounder in the 76th minute, Cintron made his final save in the 79th when Morrisville's Tariq Thompson recovered a blocked shot eight yards in front of the net for a second chance and Cintron stuck his arm out for the save.
Oneonta outshot Morrisville 28-11 in total shots, 17-4 on net, and they had a 12-5 advantage in corner kicks.
The team's first round SUNYAC match in New Paltz will start at 2 pm. The winner will advance to the conference semifinals and will play against No. 1 seed, Cortland, on Wednesday, November 5.
Before and after the match, Oneonta recognized and celebrated the careers of their nine seniors for Senior Day. Those acknowledged were
Kevin Butler (Levittown, N.Y./Island Trees),
Zach Rabadi (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay),
Sam Rogers (Broadalbin, N.Y./Broadalbin-Perth),
Milton Mancias Magana (Mamaroneck, N.Y./Mamaroneck),
Joe Holder (Greenwood Lake, N.Y./Warwick),
Iyare Harris (Kingston, NY/Kingston) Luigi Prosperi (Lynbrook, N.Y./Lynbrook),
Braeden Morrison (Marathon, N.Y./Marathon), and
Dillon Kelly (Wappingers Falls, N.Y./Beacon).
Â
