At the heel of freshman midfielder Thibault Duval, the Stony Brook Seawolves men’s soccer team cut their three-game losing streak short with a 4-2 victory over Sacred Heart.
Duval had the game of his young collegiate career, improving Stony Brook to a record of 2-5-1 on the year. Duval recorded two goals and two assists on the night, now leading the squad in points with seven on the season.
After an 11th minute goal by the Pioneers’ Jamal Vinson, Duval responded just four minutes later with his first career goal, a bullet from the top of the box to the far post.
Vinson gave Sacred Heart the lead once again in the 22nd minute, but the Seawolves would persevere. Senior Keith McKenna set up a cross for Duval, who struck a header into the back of the net in the 24th minute.
The rough start for Seawolves goalkeeper Tim McMahon did not phase him, as he went on to tally a career-high with 11 saves, not allowing Sacred Heart to score for the final 68 minutes.
Stony Brook took the lead with a 25-yard strike from junior midfielder Jevaughn Vance in the 40th minute.
Sealing the deal for the Seawolves 40 minutes later was junior Maritn Giordano off a Sacred Heart turnover. Duval found Giordano a pass from 15 feet, and that cemented Stony Brook’s highest scoring output since the 2012 America East quarterfinal, when the Seawolves tallied five goals against rival Binghamton.
This was Sacred Heart’s fourth game allowing three or more goals in five outings, but Stony Brook needed this W to build confidence after stumbling out of the gates. This was only the second time the Seawolves have scored multiple goals in a contest this season, a trend that desperately needed to be reversed.
Stony Brook kicks off a three-game home stand on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 2 p.m., when they take on Northeastern.
