ONEONTA, N.Y. -- Oneonta men's soccer senior
Imari Harris (Kingston, NY/Kingston) netted the game-winning goal to lift Oneonta above Hartwick for a 1-0 win in the Battle of the Hills, Tuesday evening. Following a scoreless first half, Harris scored the game-winner midway through the second half off an assist from graduate student
Milton Mancias Magana (Mamaroneck, NY/Mamaroneck) in the 79th minute. Senior
James Cintron (Poughkeepsie, NY/Roy C. Ketcham) finished the match with two saves for his second straight shutout as the Red Dragons improved to 4-0-1 this season and the Hawks dropped to 2-4-0 overall.
"It feels like we stole one tonight," Head Coach
Iain Byrne commented. "Hartwick were so organized and made it really difficult for us to break them down."
Jumping into the second half at the 79th minute, junior
Anthony Traube (Centereach, NY/Centereach) had the ball at midfield when he delivered a pass to the other side of the pitch that bounced off a Hartwick defender and into the corner. Mancias Magana sprinted for the ball, gained possession, then he cut inside towards the penalty area. He sent a centering pass that deflected off a Hawks player and settled eight yards in front of the net for Harris to come in and fire a shot off with his left foot and into the net. The goal was Harris' team-leading fifth of the season.
Before the Red Dragons' goal, Cintron stopped two shots, both in the second half, to maintain the clean sheet and the eventual victory. In the 46th minute, Hartwick's Fischer Brogan took a shot from 20 yards out that forced Cintron to leap up and punch the ball away from going in. During the 65th minute, Kayden Zachgo took a shot from the side of the 18-yard box, and it hit off the far post. The ball bounced back into the middle of the penalty area where Wilson Mount gained control for a shot from the top of the goal area. Cintron stepped in front of Mount's shot and made the direct save off his chest, and the ball rolled out of the 18-yard box.
The Hawks had a few corner kicks to set themselves up for the possible equalizer following the Red Dragons goal, but they could not record another shot on target and Oneonta held on for the win.
Hartwick's Jelani Usim started the game in the net and recorded one save, then Nils Ole Peterson played the second half and totaled three saves.
The Red Dragons outshot the Hawks 12-10 in total shots, 5-2 on net, while the Hawks had a 6-3 advantage in corner kicks.
Oneonta is back in action on Saturday, September 19, for a match on the road against RPI starting at 6 pm.
