In the nail-biting home match up against Centenary College, the men’s soccer team added another win under their belt while breaking the tie game during the 89th minute of overtime this past Saturday.
Before the game, men’s soccer welcomed back more than 20 alumni to campus for their annual alumni game at 9:30 a.m. The players were split into two teams and got a chance to once again play the game that they love. “It’s great to be playing soccer and is always good to get back out on the field,” Brett Lockbaum, a graduate of the class of 2013, said. “We never see each other, so it’s good to see everyone that you used to play with for the last four years.”
Head Coach Rob Dallas was excited to welcome the alumni back to campus.
“Today, a lot of guys that I had the pleasure of coaching were here and having them come out and create an atmosphere about the game was awesome,” Dallas said. “It helps to continue the Cabrini soccer tradition.” Dallas had the chance to switch roles during the alumni game; being on the field is something that he will always love.
“I love to play when I can… it’s a lot of fun,” Dallas said. “I wish I could do it more often.”
Eric Nowicki, goalie from the class of 2013, said that playing in college is something that he will always miss.
“College is definitely the best four years of your life; the working world isn’t all that fun. It’s important to enjoy school while you’re in it,” Nowick said. “I miss playing.”
The alumni stuck around after their game to watch the Cavs, and they sure did not disappoint. The matchup started with neither team scoring in the first 45 minute half. Both teams took shots on goal but neither was successful. Junior goalie R.J. Pino had a strong save for the Blue and White in the 26th minute of the first half, while Centenary goalie Jesse Goleman also stood his ground by not allowing the Cavs to score.
During the second half, the Cyclones put a point on the board. Freshman Justin White had an unassisted goal in the 78th minute. Centenary continued the momentum, winning several corner kicks, but the Cabrini defense, including Kyle Chevalier, Tyler Bond, Christian Martin and Ryan New stood strong, not letting the Cyclones add another point to the board.
Once the game dwindled down to the final minutes, it looked as if Centenary would walk away with the win but that idea soon changed with less than a minute left of the game. With a little over 30 seconds left on the clock, sophomore Bobby Kane found the back of the net, tying the game 1-1. “It felt great to score, but I can’t take the credit for the goal because without the other 10 guys on the field there would have been no scoring chance,” Kane said. “I give all of the credit to them.”
Kane’s goal gave the Cavaliers a shot at grabbing the win, adding 10 minutes of overtime onto the clock. At the seventh minute of overtime, sophomore Mohammad Konneh obtained the ball and found sophomore John Underwood in the Centenary penalty area. Underwood beat Centenary goalie Jesse Goleman and threw a loose ball in the box, successfully leading the Cavaliers to the win, ending the game 2-1.
“I was thankful for a good ball by Mo and I got a little lucky at the end,” Underwood said. “I was able to hit it in.”
Winning this game was important to the Blue and White because they lost to Centenary in the playoffs last year, causing their season to be cut shorter than they had hoped.
“This win felt great. It was something that we talked about before today’s game because we had a chip on our shoulder since last year didn’t turn out how we wanted it to,” Dallas said. “It was exciting, we played hard and did a good job with battling for what we wanted.”
“Today felt awesome,” sophomore Tyler Bond said. “We wanted to come out and beat Centenary and we can’t wait to see them in the playoffs.”
The win felt even sweeter with the alumni staying to watch.
“This win feels like payback, especially with all the alumni here from last year watching,” sophomore Mohammad Konneh said. “This game is for them, we got the win for them.”
All in all the win brought the Cavaliers to 3-0 in the Colonial States Athletic Conference and 7-4 overall. The men hope to continue their success in their next home game against Baptist Bible on Oct. 14. Game time is set for 4 p.m.
