No. 14 Men's Soccer Triumphs in Goliath Matchup; Knocks Off No. 2 Southern N.H.
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass.- In a battle between two
titans of soccer, the No. 14 Merrimack men's soccer team held onto
a 1-0 lead for 67 minutes to earn its seventh win of the 2010
campaign. The Warriors handed No. 2 Southern N.H. its first loss of
the season, downing the Penmen 1-0. Merrimack improves to 7-1-0
overall and 3-1 in the Northeast-10. Southern N.H. falls to 7-1-1
on the year and 3-1-1 in the league.
Merrimack jumped out to a 1-0 lead with 22 minutes remaining in
the first half. Ben Paradis
(Tiverton, R.I.) slipped the ball to Robbie Sabadoz
(Ottawa, Ontario) who was making a run across the top of
the penalty area. Sabado took a touch towards goal then shot a
wormburner along the ground on frame. The ball slid past the
outstretched goalkeeper and into the back of the net. The goal was
Sabadoz's team-leading seventh score of the 2010 season.
The Penmen nearly tied the score just minutes later. Southern
N.H.'s Ruben Resendes shot the ball off of a free kick on goal. The
Warrior's netminder, Kevin Joyce
(Mansfield, Mass.) smothered the ball and didn't allow a
rebound.
Joyce stood tall between the pipes as he withstood a barrage of
shots. Southern N.H. took 22 shots in the game, including 17 in the
second stanza, but Joyce turned aside all 13 that were on frame.
Joyce heroically came up early in the second half, making saves on
two point-blank headers. The senior netminder earned his seventh
victory of the year and his fourth clean sheet.
Franklin Pena
(Revere, Mass.) nearly put the home team up two goals
midway through the second 45. Pena was unmarked in the penalty area
but saw his header sail wide of the cage.
With less than five minutes remaining in the game, the Warriors
were forced to play a man down when the referee issued a red card.
Merrimack amped up the defensive effort and turned away every
chance for the visitors to ensure the win, sending the Warrior
Field faithful into a fury of cheering when the clock struck
zero.
The Merrimack backline played a solid 90 minutes, holding one of
the top teams in the nation scoreless. Nicholas LoCoco
(Gloucester, Mass.), Nelson Santos Da
Graca (Gothenburg, Sweden), Olof Lindhe
(Stockholm, Sweden), Adam Leone (East
Northport, N.Y.) and Derek Simpson
(Ludlow, Mass.) all turned in strong defensive
performances.
Southern N.H. outshot the Warriors in the game, 22-10, and 13-6
in shots on goal. The Penmen also held the advantage in corner
kicks, earning 13 of the 14 awarded in the match.
The entire game was a physical battle between the two elite
squads. The officials called 27 fouls and handed out 10 cautions
and one ejection in the contest. The first half saw 20 infractions
between the teams.
