(yumacs.com) The No. 5 seed Yeshiva University men’s soccer team competed in a thrilling Skyline Conference championship match that came down to penalty kicks, on the campus of the United States Merchant Marine Academy, on Sunday afternoon. No. 3 seed Merchant Marine (11-4-6) captured the league title, and automatic bid into NCAA Division III Tournament, by outlasting Yeshiva in penalty kicks, 4-2. The contest officially ends in a 2-2 tie.
It was a successful season for Yeshiva (9-3-3) as they won a pair of road playoff matches, including a thriller over top-seeded Manhattanville in the semifinals, to earn its first ever berth in the Skyline Conference championship match.
During the title contest, junior Lucas Baredes came up big for the Maccabees late in the second half. With YU down 2-1, the Macs drew a foul in the box with 3:59 remaining in regulation time to earn a penalty kick opportunity. Baredes lined the ball past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net to even the match at two goals apiece. It marks Baredes’ 12th goal of the season and fifth tally via a penalty kick.
Earlier in the match, late in the first half, the Maccabees got on the board first as junior Rafael Cohen tipped the ball past the near post and into the net off a centering pass from classmate Josh Ziarno. That gave YU a 1-0 advantage with 2:12 left to play in the opening half. That would be the score at the intermission.
In the second half, Merchant Marine scored the next two goals to jump out in front. Sophomore Jason Healey notched the home team’s first goal just under four minutes into the stanza. Then, freshman Wes Ferry scored on a penalty kick during the 64th minute to put the Mariners in front, 2-1.
Merchant Marine had a golden opportunity to take a two-goal lead late in the second period, but a header shot by Ferry just hit the crossbar, with 5:37 remaining. That break for Yeshiva turned out big as 1:38 later, Baredes came up with the clutch penalty-kick goal to even the match at two goals apiece and that would be the score after 90 minutes of play.
Both teams had chances but could not bury the go-ahead goal over the course of two overtime periods so the conference championship match would be determined in penalty kicks.
Senior Nicolas Dlugach made a save for the Maccabees during the shootout round. Junior Asher Martin and senior Jess Rom notched the two Yeshiva penalty-kick goals. However, it would not be enough as rookie Billy Castoro, of USMMA, converted the penalty-kick tally in the fifth round that clinched the Skyline Conference championship for the United States Merchant Marine Academy.
During the afternoon, Merchant Marine narrowly outshot Yeshiva, 15-14, and had the edge in shots on goal, 6-5. The Mariners had a commanding advantage in corner kicks, 14-3.
