Box Score LYNDHURST, N.J. – The Felician University men's soccer team came up on the short end of a 2-0 decision to the visiting Jefferson Rams in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference action on Saturday night at the Lyndhurst Recreation Complex.
Jefferson (7-2, 6-0) has won six consecutive matches. The Rams are in first place in the CACC and ranked No. 8 in the most recent NCAA Division II East Region coaches' poll.
Felician (4-5-1, 3-2-1) had the better of play early in the match, earning three corner kicks in the first eight minutes. Twice, the Golden Falcons found the head of 6-foot-2 defender Conor McKenna (Navan, Ireland/St. Patrick's Classical). He pushed one header wide, and the second was cleared off the goal line by a Ram defender.
The game turned on Jefferson's first corner kick opportunity of the match. In the 29th minute, senior Seiji Rose (Toulouse, France/Lycee Climatique et Sportif Pierre de Coubertin) put a ball in front of the goal, where teammate Myles-Jordan Senior-Campbell (London, England/John Lyon) needed only to finish with one touch.
Six-plus minutes later, the Rams doubled their lead. Junior Jason Rocha (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Lower Moreland) ran onto to a ball played ahead by classmate Dillon Abraham (Diego Martin, Trinidad & Tobago) and scored from five yards away.
The second half was saddled with whistles and saw little in the way of offensive opportunity for either side. Felician's best chance to score came in a sequence in the 71st and 72nd minutes in which back-to-back shots created corner kicks. The latter kick resulted in a header from Chris McLaughlin (Hollis, N.Y./Preparatory Academy for Writers) which was saved by Jefferson senior goalkeeper Ben Sauer (Bel Air, Md./Perry Hall Christian).
The sides were called for a combined 39 fouls, including 29 against Jefferson. Seven yellow cards were issued – five to the Rams. Sauer picked up his fourth shutout of the season with three saves. Felician senior keeper John Burns (Saddle Brook, N.J./Saddle Brook) was also credited with three saves.
Jefferson held a 12-10 edge in shots, led by three from Senior-Campbell. The Golden Falcons attempted seven corner kicks, while the Rams were awarded six.
Felician plays at second-place Bloomfield College in CACC action on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Foley Field.
