UNION, N.J. (9/2/14) – Kevin Olaya scored the first goal of the Kean University men's soccer season and it proved to be the game-winner as the Cougars defeated St. Joseph's College – Long Island by a 2-0 count on Tuesday.
With six minutes to go in the first half, Olaya had a different scoring bid as he sent a pass across the 6-yard box that nearly resulted in a fantastic chance for the Cougars (1-1-1), but Golden Eagle goaltender Avery Gomez was able to snare it with his fingertips to deny the opportunity.
Five minutes later, Alex Noriega had a dangerous chance of his own, but Gomez swallowed it up to keep the match scoreless. The teams both took five shots in the first half, and Gomez and Kean's Nick Pavlichko were asked to make one save apiece.
Early on in the second half, players from both sides collapsed around the ball deep in the Eagles' zone. Steven Zamudio was able to tap a pass to Olaya, who banged home the go-ahead goal and the Cougars' first tally of 2014.
Nick Kyriakidis almost scored for Kean midway through the second half; he beat the goalkeeper out in space but put the ball into the side netting from a tough angle.
The teams continued to scrap in the one-goal game, though Kean started to assert itself and did not allow a shot on goal for the entire second half.
With St. Joe's pressuring for the equalizer with less than a minute to go and most players in the offensive half of the pitch, Robert Barrera (pictured left) took a long outlet pass and was in behind most Eagles. He put a nifty move on the lone defender back about 35 yards from the cage to go 1-on-1 with the keeper. His shot to the lower right-hand corner secured the victory for Kean and gave head coach Rob Irvine his first win at the helm of the program.
With his second-straight shutout, Kean keeper Nick Pavlichko now has 200 scoreless minutes this season. The Eagles fell to 1-2-0 with the loss.
The men's soccer team will hit the road for two games in Colorado this weekend. First, the Cougars will take on Colorado College on Saturday, then remain on the CC campus to take on George Fox University on Sunday.
