ONEONTA, NY – The Alfred University men's soccer team returned to action in a 3-1 loss to SUNY Oneonta on Saturday afternoon from Red Dragon Field.
The Saxons (1-1, 0-0 Empire 8) faced 22 shots, nine of which were on goal from the Red Dragons (1-0, 0-0 SUNYAC).
Justin Eaton (Williamson, NY/Williamson) scored AU's lone goal across two shots.
Chase Freeland (Hornell, NY/Hornell) and
Noam Sokolovsky (East Lyme, CT/East Lyme) each picked up one shot on goal for the Saxons.
"It was a hard-fought game and we competed really well against a strong Oneonta team," Head Coach
Tracy Blake said. "Justin entered the game with more than 30 minutes remaining and created opportunities for the team."
The Red Dragons offense were aggressive in the early stages of the first half, as they scored in the 15th minute to put the Saxons in a 1-0 deficit. Alfred University successfully defended SUNY Oneonta's next six shots before entering halftime trailing 1-0.
In the early moments of the second half, the Red Dragons found the back of the net to extend their lead over AU. An assist from
Joaquin Ghioldi-Acosta (Los Angeles, CA/The Waverly School) to Eaton put the Saxons on the scoreboard, as they cut their deficit in half. The Red Dragons retaliated with a penalty kick goal for the 3-1 advantage and the eventual win.
"We are not happy with the loss; however, we are happy with where we are with the development of our team this early in the season," Blake said. "I'm very happy with our team as a whole."
Alfred University will next return home to face Bryant & Stratton College as part of the annual Bryan Karl Tournament. The game is slated to begin at 4:30 PM.
