Men’s Soccer Fails to Capitalize on Early Goal
LORETTO, Pa. (Oct. 23, 2005) – Freshman Aaron Clapham (Christchurch, New Zealand) gave Saint Francis a 1-0 lead just over six minutes into the match, but Robert Morris responded with a quick equalizer and a second-half goal to come away with a 2-1 win in Northeast Conference action at Stokes Athletics Field on Sunday afternoon.
Clapham netted a rebound off the RMU goalkeeper in the 7th minute to give the Red Flash the early lead. Colonials’ goalie Matt Felice fumbled a header on target by SFU freshman Jonathan Guse (Chandler, Ariz.) and Clapham raced in to take advantage of the miscue.
RMU (7-5-1, 3-1-1 NEC) didn’t trail long as Allan Brown scored off a long throw-in by Mark Klabnik six minutes later. Brown’s right-footed shot from six-yards out beat SFU senior goalkeeper Bobby Pipech (Broadheadsville, Pa.) to the lower left corner of the net.
Robert Morris’ Matt Paradise headed in the game winner off a corner kick in the 71st minute. Dan Campbell sent in the free kick from the left side and Paradise beat a Red Flash defender to the ball, redirecting it to the left corner for the go-ahead score.
Saint Francis sophomore Bryan Maguire (McAllen, Texas) had a right-footed blast from inside the box miss inches wide with less than two minutes to play.
Pipech and Felice both posted four saves. Robert Morris held a slim edge in shots, 15-14.
The Red Flash return to the pitch on Friday when they host Mount Saint Mary’s in a pivotal Northeast Conference match at Stokes Athletics Field at 2:30 p.m.
Robert Morris 2
Saint Francis 1
SFU 1 0 – 1
RMU 1 1 – 2
Shots: SFU – 14; RMU – 15
Saves: SFU – 4 (Pipech 4); RMU – 1 (Felice 4)
Corner kicks: SFU – 5; RMU – 6
Records: SFU - 5-5-4, 1-2-2 NEC; RMU – 7-5-1, 3-1-1 NEC
Next game: Mount Saint Mary’s at Saint Francis, 2:30 p.m. Friday