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 Magnusson nets 6th goal of the year |
Nov. 3, 2007
NEWARK, NJ - Patrick Figueiredo scored in the game's final second, lifting Adelphi to a 2-1 win over NJIT in men's Atlantic Soccer Conference action Saturday afternoon on Lubetkin Field.
Down two men for the last 13:53, NJIT was unable to clear the ball from in front of its net and Figueiredo knocked in the game-winner as the final horn sounded. John Koutsounadis assisted.
Adelphi had trailed, 1-0, most of the match, but Figueiredo tied it for the Panthers on a penalty kick at 76:07.
The Highlanders grabbed the 1-0 advantage on the team-leading sixth goal of the season by Erik Magnusson, who was assisted by Kayo Emojong at 3:46.
Magnusson, who was knocked hard to the ground on a couple of occasions, exited the game a few minutes before the first half was over and did not return.
In goal, NJIT's Josh Osit made seven saves and Adelphi's Vincent Treglia made three saves. The total shots were 21-8 in favor of the Panthers and the shots on goal were 9-4.
Two incidents within seconds of Adelphi's penalty kick goal helped shape the final outcome.
The referee, who did not issue any cautions in a rough physical first half, issued a total of seven cards in the second half. Included was a direct red card on NJIT's Kevin Blanco at 75:59 and seven seconds later an automatic red card issued to Highlander Robert Herrera for two yellow cards related to the call that resulted in Adelphi's penalty kick.
For close to 75 minutes, NJIT had done well protecting its 1-0 lead. Suddenly, NJIT found itself down to nine players and the score tied, 1-1. The outmanned Highlanders spent the lion's share of the last 13:53 in their own end attempting to preserve the tie and they succeeded up until the final instant.
Magnusson's goal was a pretty play all around, as Emojong made a strong run with the ball down the middle and sent a fine pass into the top of the penalty area. Magnusson played the pass perfectly and fired a 16-yard shot into the upper right corner of the goal from the left side of the box late in the fourth minute.
Foreshadowing the bad luck that cost it the match, NJIT, aiming for an insurance goal that never came, hit the crossbar twice in the first 50 minutes.
In the 13th minute, Osvaldo Perez made a run similar to the earlier one by Emojong and passed ahead Magnusson. Instead of shooting, the sophomore urn Gustav Warfving, who hammered a shot off the crossbar from in close.
Perez had his own turn of bad luck less than five minutes into the second half, hitting the crossbar on a 20-yard shot from just outside the top of the box.
Adelphi's best opportunity of the first half was a 25-yard try by Val Charalambous that Osit saved with a deflection over the crossbar.
Still down, 1-0, Adelphi stepped up its attack midway through the second half. In the 65th minute, Kris Frick's strong shot on a difficult angle was deflected by Osit, but no Panther was on hand for the rebound.
In the moments before the penalty kick, Adelphi missed its best try up to that point, when Koutsounadis' close shot missed wide right.
NJIT, which played its last regular season home game, honored its four seniors in pre-game ceremonies. The honorees making their final home game appearance were tri-captain Dario Brito, Collin Cunning, tri-captain Robert Herrera and Brian Nash.
The Highlanders will wrap up the 2007 regular season with a game 7 pm game against Lafayette in Easton, PA.
