Marist men’s soccer (2–1-3) closed out its non-conference slate with a draw on Tuesday night, tying Albany (3-2-1) 2-2. Marist broke the game open in the 23rd minute but fell behind after two Great Danes goals in the first 10 minutes of the second half. Graduate student forward Mani Diop tied the game with two minutes to go, salvaging a result for the Red Foxes.
The opening goal came just a quarter of the way into the match from the foot of sophomore wingback Will Salivonchik. That goal, assisted by junior midfielder Caio Cavaletti, is the first of his career. Cavaletti’s assist extends his streak of games with an assist to three, the same number as his season tally.
Albany got on the board quickly in the second half, as graduate student midfielder Caleb Vallance converted on a tap-in made possible by senior midfielder Ivar Gissurarson. The second goal, coming in the 54th minute—just five minutes after the Great Danes’ first—was scored from close range by sophomore midfielder David Barkan after junior goalkeeper Alex Murania could not hold on to a shot. Both scorers opened their accounts for this season with goals.
“We got a little defensive to start the half. We weren’t turned on enough,” said Marist head coach Matt Viggiano.
Neither team came out of the gate strong, with the first shot not coming until the 19th minute. Albany picked up its pace in the second half, finishing with 12 shots after taking just two in the first 45 minutes. Marist, who led with seven shots in the first half, chalked up 13.
The Red Foxes made two key changes coming into this game: freshman goalie Gavin Mitlitski, who started the two previous games, missed this one due to illness, and junior attacker Chris Verheul sat out with an ankle injury. Murania resumed his place in net after starting the first three matches, and freshman midfielder Seth Hadeed took Verheul’s spot in the starting XI.
“It’s not a long-term thing. He’s a stubborn man, a tough kid. If it’s not Tuesday, it’s Saturday. We’re playing for points Saturday night,” said Viggiano earlier this week about Verheul’s injury and potential return.
In attack, Marist got into a 3-2-5 shape, pushing wingbacks Salivonchik and sophomore winger Adriano Iannello up wide. This worked very well as the pair of Gijs’ in the midfield—junior Gijs Verheul and graduate student Gijs Velings—formed a “W” shape with the back three and fed balls to their attack, primarily to Iannello out wide left.
“Every once in a while a coach gets it right,” said Viggiano.
The first real chance of the game came in the 17th minute in the form of a free-kick for Marist just to the left of the box. Cavaletti attempted to deliver a cross into the chaos zone, but didn’t get the pass past the first defender in the way.
Salivonchik’s goal just six minutes later was due to Cavaletti’s play, though, as the Brazilian’s cross-field switch of play gave Salivonchik a one-on-one in the box, which he converted.
Marist, who utterly dominated the first half, got another great chance in the 36th minute, also at the boot of Salivonchik. Sophomore keeper Alexander Genz got in the way of this shot, though, and the Great Danes’ defense recovered in time to block a follow-up effort from Hadeed.
The Red Foxes carried a 1-0 lead into the break, with a 7-2 advantage in the shots category being the key to success.
That lead did not see much life after the break. Albany tied the game up in the 49th minute with Vallance and took the lead just five minutes later, a lightning-quick 1-2 punch that shocked the Red Foxes.
The Great Danes kept the pressure on, though, forcing the issue as they tried to grab a third. Albany’s defense did a great job of squeezing the host’s attack, limiting good chances and strangling any space they may have had in the first frame.
“We started off pretty deep, and we didn’t have the same energy that we were supposed to have to mitigate those goals,” said senior defender Ethan Ortiz.
Graduate student forward Mani Diop did his best to tie the game up and nearly did; his shot from inside the box in the 78th minute careened off the outside of the post.
Diop got his goal with the game on the brink, though, tying the match at 2-2 with under two minutes to play. Since transferring from the University of Washington, Diop has scored three goals in six games, a strong return from a player who hasn’t featured prominently up top in the past.
“It’s a rough feeling because we didn’t get the three points,” said Diop. “Obviously, it feels good to score.”
This draw ends Marist’s non-conference schedule with two wins and three draws in six games, although the Red Foxes finish with zero wins out of four at home.
“[Tenney Stadium] has to be a fortress. We’ve got to get three points on Saturday,” said Viggiano.
The Red Foxes start Metro Conference play on Saturday, hosting Mount St. Mary’s at 7 p.m.
“The lesson is that we have to play a full 90. But, we’ll take the result,” said Viggiano.
Edited by Max Rosen
Graphic by Isabel Cortese
Photo from Marist Athletics
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