FAIRFIELD, Conn. – It had been nearly a month since
Diallo Simon-Ponte received the nod for the starting lineup, last getting selected for the Yale game. So when Head Coach
Carl Rees pointed his way this afternoon, the junior made the most of his opportunity.
Simon-Ponte delivered the deciding goal off a rebound from a teammate's saved penalty kick to send the Fairfield University men's soccer team to a 2-1 win over Niagara University in the team's Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) opener. The victory also evened things out with Fairfield's overall record at 4-4-0.
"We needed to be assertive and aggressive in our attack in order to get our MAAC campaign started with three points," Head Coach
Carl Rees said. "I thought we controlled the game in possession without capitalizing on opportunities created. This is typical with a young group at this stage of the season. While we had a great effort from our starters, we also received strong play from our reserves.
Austin Capasso and
Jack Weiss gave us an immediate lift when introduced to the game which is another positive sign that we are developing as a collective."
The game presented several opportunities for Fairfield right from the opening minute.
Santiago Gonzalez nearly put the ball in the back of the net as the recipient of a brilliant give-and-go that placed the ball on his foot. The freshman released a shot that was on target but a diving save from Steve Casey kept the game scoreless just seconds into the contest.
The scoring chance would be a foreshadowing of sorts as it was Gonzalez who would push the Stags into the lead in the 31
st minute.
Diego Casielles took control of the ball about 25 yards from goal and sent a pass to
Cormac Pike. The freshman finagled his way around his defender and sent the ball toward Gonzalez by skipping a pass through a second Purple Eagle. Gonzalez ripped a shot from the top of the box that caught the far corner of the goal for a 1-0 lead.
The second half started with the score still at 1-0 but both teams came out of the locker room with dutiful purpose as each had an excellent scoring chance. First, Fairfield's
Joseph Meyer found open space and directed a ball toward goal that was blocked by a Niagara defender. The ball rebounded back to Santiago who quickly sent the ball back at his target but Casey was equal to the task.
Niagara earned its best scoring chance of the afternoon on its next possession as Jordan Acevedo navigated to an open area about 15 yards from goal and hit a shot that sailed past Fairfield's goalkeeper only to be denied when the ball ricocheted off the post.
The game would eventually be tied in the 55
th minute when Niagara benefitted from a misdirected clear attempt by Fairfield that wound up in the back of the Stags' goal for an own goal, making the score 1-1 with 25 minutes left in regulation.
The Stags were awarded a penalty kick after a Niagara defender was called for a hand ball inside the box.
Diego Casielles attempted the kick but Casey dove to keep the shot away from the goal. The ball ended up on the foot of Meyer who tried a shot but saw it blocked. The play was eventually finished when Simon-Ponte controlled the ball and scored the game winner with just over 24 minutes remaining in regulation.
Today's match ended a three-game home stand for the Stags as the team went 2-1-0 over the stretch. The team plays its next two MAAC games on the road, beginning with Monmouth University on October 3. Game time is 7 pm.
