For the first of many away games the Stony Brook Men’s Soccer team will have this season, the team traveled to Owen T. Carroll Field in New Jersey to take on Seton Hall.
The Seawolves played the spoiler role perfectly Sunday night as they went on to beat the Pirates in their own home opener with a dominant 2-0 victory.
Right from the opening whistle, Stony Brook was in complete control, playing possession in the attacking third. The offense excelled in keeping Seton Hall on its heels and waiting for the right opportunity to strike.
The opening goal came only seven minutes into the first half, when sophomore midfielder Serge Gamwanya headed in his first goal of the season. The game winner came after a long throw-in from junior defender Barnabas Mako.
The Seawolves did not slow down there, continuing to put pressure on the Pirates for a majority of the first half. The few times the Pirates were able to cross midfield and enter their attacking third, they were halted in their tracks by the stifling Seawolf defense. This helped the Seawolves enter halftime with a 1-0 lead.
Stony Brook picked up right where it left off in the second half, controlling the tempo and pace of the game. It was not until the 54th minute when Stony Brook struck gold again. After a low cross into the box from junior midfielder Thibault Duval and a scramble in the box, senior forward Eduardo Valle found the back of the net again to push the Seawolves’ lead to 2-0.
Along with a lockdown defense, junior goalkeeper Tom McMahon had six saves in his first shutout of the season to help keep the Pirates off the board. As time dwindled down, the Seawolves began to sit back and play defensively, taking their time with the ball. Despite a big offensive push and several looks on net from the Pirates, the attempts were futile.
Valle, who has played in a total of 28 matches at defense and midfield over his three-year career at Stony Brook, started Sunday night’s game at forward and recorded his first goal and assist of the season.
The team’s next matchup will be at Buffalo on Friday, Sept. 2 at 10 a.m.. From there, the team will stay in Buffalo to take on Canisius on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 2 p.m.. The final stop of their road trip will be against Central Connecticut on Wednesday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m..
