Sept. 19, 2010
Box Score
HAMILTON, N.Y. - For the second-straight game, the Lafayette men's soccer team relinquished an early goal at the Colgate Raider Adidas Classic in Hamilton, N.Y. Unlike Friday's 1-0 loss to Binghamton, however, the quick tally would not sink the Leopards as sophomore Blake Fink buried the equalizer in the 55th minute to give Lafayette a 1-1 draw against Vermont.
With the stalemate, the Leopards move to 3-2-2. The Leopards are also 1-1-1 in matches where their opponent scores first. Lafayette has allowed one goal or less in six of seven contests this season. The Catamounts, who had allowed only two tallies in five matches entering Sunday, move to 4-1-2 after playing their second draw of the weekend.
Fink, who found the net for the first time this season and the third of his collegiate career, put in a rebound after Vermont goalkeeper Xan Rouselle stopped but could not corral an attempt by senior B.J. Glenn. The unassisted goal at 54:51, which tied the score at 1-1, was the last tally of the day.
Senior Andrew Pianko made nine stops in net for Lafayette, including six in a very aggressive first-half attack from the Vermont offense. Pianko lowered his goals-against average to 0.94 with a strong 110 minutes between the pipes.
The lone tally for the Catamounts came at the 14:17 mark, when Malick Camara took advantage of a failed clear attempt by the Leopards and struck the ball past Pianko to give Vermont a 1-0 edge.
The Leopards had chances to win the match with corner kicks in the closing seconds of both 10-minute overtime periods. A shot by junior Wayne Maminski went stopped by Rouselle at the end of the first extra frame, while sophomore Josh Brown's header sailed wide as the final horn sounded in the second overtime.
Lafayette was the aggressor in the additional 30 minutes of action, outshooting Vermont by a 7-2 mark and firing off the only pair of shots on goal in the overtimes. Overall, both teams managed 22 shots, with the Catamounts putting 10 tries on net to the Leopards' five.
Lafayette and Vermont have now met on three occasions, all of which have come at a neutral site. The all-time series currently stands at 1-1-1, with both previous meetings coming at the University of New Hampshire in 1996 (Vermont, 1-0) and 2002 (Lafayette, 1-0 in overtime).
The Leopards will return to Mike Bourger '44 Field at Oaks Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 25 to challenge Holy Cross at 3 p.m. The Patriot League opener for Lafayette will also serve as the squad's annual Alumni Day.
