Facing a Niagara team buried at the bottom of the MAAC conference standings, Marist men’s soccer dominated in all aspects of a critical 4-1 win to maintain their postseason position with two matches remaining.
The Red Foxes (6-7-1, 3-2-1 MAAC) fired off an astounding 32 shots and 12 shots on goal compared to just 7 total shots for Niagara (2-10-2, 0-5-1 MAAC), with 10 offside calls on Marist preventing an even more dominant win.
Senior forward Richard Morel earned his fifth goal of the season and assisted freshman forward/midfielder Chris Verheul for his third goal in 2024; a pair of sophomores defender Nicholas Sanchez and midfielder Arion Ulaj also stepped up to contribute goals of their own.
With the win, Marist extended their unbeaten streak at home to five consecutive matches.
“Usually the atmosphere here is very good, we love playing here,” said Viggiano. “It’s home. We talked about it at the beginning of the year, [Tenney Stadium] being a fortress.”
“This is our house, we want to protect it,” said Ulaj. “It feels so good when the fans come out and support us.”
After a scoreless home draw with Merrimack left Marist at seventh in the MAAC standings, the Red Foxes entered today desperately needing a win with only two additional matches coming before the eight-team MAAC conference tournament.
Wednesday afternoon’s match with Niagara presented a golden opportunity for Marist to pick up three points against a Niagara squad that has yet to win a MAAC game and had only scored once in their past three matches.
Marist started as the aggressor with a plethora of chances in the early going. In the eighth minute, freshman forward/midfielder Chris Verheul was in prime position to knock in a shot off a high pass, but a Niagara defender blocked the shot. Chris Verheul had a chance to score again moments later on a breakaway; a one-on-one opportunity against junior goalkeeper Jamie Barry ended with Barry successfully tripping him up without garnering a foul call in the box.
The Red Foxes continued applying pressure, with freshman midfielder Caio Cavaletti coming up just short in making contact with a well-placed crosser by Nicholas Sanchez.
Sanchez then took matters into his own hands moments later by corralling a deflection off Barry, gaining a step on him and burying his shot into a wide-open net; sophomore midfielder Kyle Evans was credited with the assist to help Marist go up by one in the 17th minute.
“I’m always glad to see a [full] back get on the score sheet,” said Matt Viggiano.
Marist executed another beautiful scoring play just six minutes later. Senior forward Richard Morel cascaded up the right side of the pitch and baited Barry into approaching him. Morel took advantage by sending a cross to Chris Verheul on the left side, who then reeled off a strong shot for his third goal of the year.
The Purple Eagles’ comeback effort nearly became insurmountable in the 36th minute when sophomore midfielder Thomas Brooks received a red card for tripping up graduate student defender/midfielder Stephen Betz. However, after a video view, officials overturned the call, sparing Niagara from playing a man down for the remainder of the match.
The second half began with more of the same, as Morel threatened by striking a close shot in the 54th minute that sailed just high. After multiple close calls, Morel finally broke through with a goal during the 60th minute from close range on the left side; once again, he used his footwork to move Barry slightly out of position. The goal was Morel’s fifth of the year, tying his scoring output from last season with one more match to play.
“I think as the games are going by, I’m starting to feel it’s coming down to the end, so I’m just trying to give my all every game and make the most of it,” said Morel.
Niagara immediately blunted Marist’s momentum by catching the defense napping on the very next play. Just after kickoff from the goal, Marist’s defense faced an advance from senior forward Felix Kogler, who entered play with four goals scored.
Kogler’s shot ricocheted off the hands of graduate student goalkeeper Jamie Lowell and landed near junior forward Robert Woods, who deposited his shot to cut Marist’s lead to 3-1.
“I think, occasionally, we show our youth,” said Viggiano. “Obviously, when we start seven, eight, nine underclassmen… it’s hard to be mature sometimes, as much as I want them to [be].”
Unlike in previous matches where Marist sat back in defense mode while protecting a lead, the Red Foxes continued to pummel Niagara with shots. The strategy worked, as sophomore midfielder Arion Ulaj put the icing on the cake with a goal in the 84th minute to extend Marist’s lead to 4-1.
“All year, I feel like it’s been coming, and finally today I was able to get on the score sheet,” said Ulaj. “After missing all of last year with an ACL injury, it feels so good to finally get that goal.”
The one sour note for Marist occurred during the final minute of play when senior midfielder Jørgen Thue Kristiansen suffered what appeared to be a serious leg injury and had to be carried off the field for his teammates.
For Marist, next on the docket is a road match this Saturday against Rider at 1 p.m., followed by the regular season finale at home next Wednesday against Siena. Both teams reside at the very top of the current MAAC standings, so the Red Foxes will have their work cut out for them in trying to solidify a spot in the MAAC tournament.
Edited by Marley Pope
Graphic by Raegan Van Zandt
Photo by Kira Crutcher
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