FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University men's soccer team created chances throughout the match against Manhattan on Wednesday night but the Stags were only able to finish one of those opportunities resulting in a 2-1 setback to the Jaspers.

Realistically, Fairfield beat the Manhattan goalkeeper on three shots but two Jasper defenders stood on the line and were able to clear the attempts away from the goal, keeping Fairfield with just one goal for the evening.

Cody Read was the first Stag to have a goal pulled away just inches from the line which came in the 13^th minute and would have put the Stags in front by a 1-0 score. Ironically just a few minutes later, Manhattan would end up with the game's first goal which came when Ayoub Boumelala was able to loft a ball just out of the reach of goalkeeper James Anderson. In the second half, Malachy McGovern fell short of his first goal of the season when his shot was deflected right at the back line which would have tied the score at 2-2 in the 60^th minute.

Fairfield held a 15-8 advantage in shots throughout the 90 minutes, including doubling up the Jaspers in the second half by a 7-3 count. Nearly half of Fairfield's attempts came at the feet as well as the head of Thomas Drillien, who was responsible for seven shots with four being on target.

It was his third shot however that produced the best result but the chance came after an outstanding effort by Alex Marin. Marin brought the ball down the left flank and cut toward the goal before pushing a cross with the proper pace toward the center of the box. Drillien rose above his defender and redirected the ball with a solid header that found the far corner and tied the game at 1-1 in the 41^st minute.

"Thomas' goal gave us a real lift," Head Coach Carl Rees said. "All week we worked on penetration from wide areas and set up systems where we have numbers up situations which transpired today. I think we were able to get more quality balls from wide areas."

Fairfield worked through the second half by spending most of its time of possession on the Manhattan side of the pitch. The Jasper defense was able to fend off wave after wave of Fairfield's attack, allowing the team to preserve its one goal lead which came off a goal in the 52^nd minute.

"We created chances on offense and nullified their main threat up front," Coach Rees said. "I was happy with the effort at the end with us knocking on the door consistently. But we hit this road block where we are creating chances but are not converting."

Anderson finished the match with three saves while his counterpart Danny DiMarco collected four saves in addition to the two team saves.

The Stags will complete a two-game homestand on Saturday, October 14 when they host Marist College at Lessing Field. Game time is listed for 7:00 pm.