Had it not been for the effort of goalkeeper Edmond Kaiser or defender Jon Jelercic, the Stony Brook men’s soccer team would not still have a shot at a regular-season title.

Looking to rebound from consecutive defeats, the Seawolves (6-5-5, 4-1-3 CAA) traveled down to Williamsburg, Va. to take on the William & Mary Tribe (2-8-6, 1-4-3 CAA) on Friday. However, they failed to fully bounce back and engaged in a scoreless draw. By earning a point with the draw, Stony Brook took first place back for the time being and will await the outcomes of the Monmouth-Campbell and Hofstra-Northeastern matches on Saturday to figure out its final place in the conference table.

Throughout the first half, the Seawolves relied on Kaiser to rescue them. In the seventh minute, a simple pass over the top of the defense left William & Mary forward Lucas Caldas with acres of space. Caldas carried the ball up the pitch to create a one-on-one chance with Kaiser, but Stony Brook’s shot-stopper denied him.

Another golden chance arose for the Tribe in the 24th minute, but Kaiser denied midfielder Alfredo Bozalongo with a full-extension sprawling save to his right.

In the 50th minute, a cross from William & Mary midfielder Ian Krajna found Bozalongo isolated near the penalty marker. Bozalongo’s close-range effort was stopped by a diving Kaiser to keep the match scoreless.

The Seawolves showed some life in the 64th minute when forward Caleb Danquah received a pass from midfielder Lorenzo Selini on the left flank. Danquah alluded a pair of defenders and hammered a shot towards the near post, but it was saved by William & Mary goalkeeper Cole McNally.

In the final 10 minutes, the Tribe continued to try and play spoiler. A long-range effort from Bozalongo in the 80th minute narrowly missed the back of the net when it skimmed the crossbar. In the 82nd minute, Kaiser kept his team in it when he stuffed a close-range volley from William & Mary midfielder Diogo Branco. Coming off the rebound, Bozalongo took a shot towards the open net, but his shot was intercepted by Jelercic to salvage the draw.

Stony Brook was outshot 19-6 by the Tribe — its largest negative shot disparity in conference play this season. The team landed only three shots on goal compared to William & Mary’s eight. The second half in particular was lackluster for the Seawolves, as they were outshot 12-1.

Forwards Olsen Aluc and Moses Bakabulindi along with midfielder Amit Magoz were all credited with a shot on target. Forward Johan Velez and midfielder Trevor Harrison also took one shot apiece.

Kaiser finished with eight saves and recorded his fourth clean sheet of the season. He extended his lead on the Coastal Athletic Association’s (CAA) saves leaderboard, finishing the regular season with 76. Kaiser’s counterpart — McNally — made two stops. Danquah’s shot was deemed to have not been on goal by the scorekeeper.

Bozalongo had more shots than all of Stony Brook combined, with seven. He landed three of his attempts on goal.

The Seawolves could still win the regular-season title and earn the top seed in the 2023 CAA men’s soccer tournament. However, they will need both Hofstra and Monmouth to lose on Saturday, as they do not own the tiebreaker over either team. Stony Brook can not finish any lower than third place. If either the Pride or the Hawks lose, the Seawolves will get a top-two seed, earning them a first-round bye in the playoffs.