Men's Soccer Kicks Off With Loss to Berkeley

BROOKLYN, NY – The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's soccer team ushered in a new era playing their first intercollegiate varsity game against Berkeley College on Wednesday, the 12th varsity sport for the newly minted NCAA Division III athletic program.

Under the lights of the Aviator Sports Complex, the Bears fell 11-3 to the Knights, the defending Hudson Valley Men's Athletic Conference champions. Despite the lopsided final score, St. Joseph's only trailed by two goals at halftime and there were many positive performances to build upon.

Berkeley got on the board first in the 10th minute on a feed from Andrew Levy, that was headed in by Guillermo Moscoso. Ten minutes later, the Knights went up 2-0 when David Mugenga scored off a rebound.

St. Joseph's responded immediately on the ensuing possession, off a beautiful shot by freshman forward Raul Urshela (Orlando, FL/Colonial) from the left side of the penalty box that was placed perfectly in the upper right corner, leaving the goalie defenseless. After Berkeley added a pair of goals to go up 4-1, Urshela struck again in the 38th minute, putting away a loose ball from inside the penalty box.

Berkeley came out the break determined, tacking on five goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half to build a commanding 9-2 lead. St. Joseph's got their final tally in the 27th minute from an unlikely source with freshman defenseman Evenezer Tekie (Indianapolis, IN/Herron HS) lobbing a ball from nearly 30 yards out over the goalie who came off his line.

Freshman goalie Michael Miner (Schenevus, NY/Schenevus) had an outstanding rookie debut, despite taking the loss. Miner faced a barrage of 35 shots from the Knights, making 19 saves, which included several fast break chances and full diving stops.

Berkeley (2-4, 1-0 HVMAC) was led by Mugenga who had six goals with an assist.

St. Joseph's (0-1, 0-1 HVMAC) returns to the field on Friday, September 23rd facing Cooper Union in a HVMAC matchup at Aviator Field at 7 p.m.