UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's soccer team collected a huge 1-0 Empire 8 victory over Russell Sage College on Wednesday afternoon. 
 
Adin Day (Mohawk, NY/Central Valley Academy) scored the lone goal of the match off a nifty pass from Brandon Pender (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian) at the 7:50 mark. It was Day's second goal of the season and Pender's first assist of the 2023 campaign.
 
Utica outshot Sage 12-6 including a dominant first half in which the team had 8 shots to Sage's 3. Day led the team with three shots including two on target while Byamungu Mugushu (Syracuse, NY/Bishop Grimes) tallied two shots. Zachary Accetta (Rocky Point, NY/Rocky Point) shined in his collegiate debut making one save on six shots faced, collecting a shutout and victory.
 
The Pioneers started the game off aggressively, tallying two shots within the first four minutes. Yet, at the 7:50 mark, Pender found Day and the Pioneers grabbed a 1-0 edge in the contest. Utica continued to push the ball downfield and fired off plenty of shots and took its 1-0 edge into the half.
 
The second half was much more balanced with each team having its chances, yet neither could break through. Accetta made his lone save of the match in fine fashion, denying a Sage shot at the 47:22 mark to keep the Pioneers in front. At the waning stages of the match, Sage received a pair of yellow cards at 75:41 and 83:05. Utica held onto its early lead and secured a 1-0 Empire 8 victory.
 
Utica (4-6-2, 2-2-1 Empire 8) will hit the road and face Houghton University on Saturday, October 14 at 1 p.m.