King's (N.Y.) Trumps Men's Soccer in HVIAC Showdown

BROOKLYN, N.Y.—The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's soccer team was defeated by King's College (N.Y.), 5-2, in a critical Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) contest at Aviator Sports and Events Center on Thursday, October 9.

Coming into the matchup, St. Joseph's (4-5, 2-2 HVIAC) had been gaining momentum in the standings by winning three of their last four. King's (4-7, 2-3 HVIAC) entered the contest coming off a two-game losing streak where they were outscored by a combined 10-0.

Hungry for a win, the Lions jumped on St. Joseph's early, building a 3-0 lead before the 20-minute mark.

The Bears would respond, getting on the board in the 32nd minute thanks to a header from Raul Urshela (Orlando, Fla./Colonial) fed by Beka Goduadze's (Tbilisi, Georgia/Lyceum "NK") sideline pass, but trailed 3-1 at the intermission.

In the 61st minute, Thomas Homier (Middleton, Del./Middletown) cut the deficit to 3-2 with his team-high-tying fifth goal of the season off of an assist from Urshela.

In a game of momentum swings, King's quickly delivered their own response. Felix Bravo scored his second goal of the night in the 66th minute, putting away a free kick off the foot of Matthew Cantreras. Seth Parks would then take advantage of a penalty kick opportunity in the 88thminute, sealing the Lions' 5-2 victory.

St. Joseph's got the better of the possession battle, heavily outshooting King's College 35-12. But Lions' goalie Jacob Weight was solid in net, tallying 12 saves. King's made the most of their offensive opportunities, placing eight of their 12 shots on goal and converting on five.

The Bears entered the night in sole possession of third place in the league standings but now share the spot with Albany Pharmacy, but hold the tiebreaker with the head-to-head victory. But in one of the closest seasons in league history, all four playoff spots are up for grabs with just two games separating first and sixth place in the standings.

St. Joseph's will look to get back on track on October 15 hosting Medgar Evers College at Aviator Sports and Events Center at 6 p.m. with the women playing the Cougars in the nightcap of the doubleheader at 8 p.m. Live stats will be available at SJCBears.com