UTICA, NY - Utica University's men's soccer team hosted its third straight home game as one of the Empire 8's top teams, SUNY Brockport, came to Casamento Field. After honoring their nine remaining seniors of the 16-player class, the Pioneers would deliver one of the most significant men's soccer wins in recent history. The Golden Eagles entered the matchup 5-0-1 in the E8, but it was the orange and blue extending their win streak to four in a 2-0 fight. Senior
Zachary Accetta (Rocky Point, NY/Rocky Point) had a historic night in goal, while sophomore
Carter Cookinham (Poland, NY/Poland) netted both scores in the program's first victory over Brockport.
While two main stars shone for the Pioneers, it was Accetta who truly stole the show. After being honored in the senior day ceremony, Accetta had the best goalkeeping performance in almost exactly a decade. The netminder turned away an astonishing 16 shots in a shutout, the most since October 15th of 2016, when Matthew Milograno '18 made 19 saves in 110:00, a 3-3 draw with Houghton. Accetta entered the game with the sixth-best save percentage in the nation (.905), but he will rocket up the rankings, as he now sits at .931. Sophomore
Carter Cookinham (Poland, NY/Poland) secured the first brace of his collegiate career, becoming the 11th Pioneer to score this season, but just the second multi-goal scorer. Junior
Braeden Arias (New Milford, CT/New Milford) recorded the lone assist of the night, solidifying his team-leading season total at three.
The night featured some of the most action Casamento Field has seen, with the teams combining for 40 shot attempts and 26 shots on target. The 40 attempts are the most of this season, while the 26 shots on target date back to the same above-mentioned 10/15/2016 matchup. Utica accounted for 11 of the attempts, shooting an incredibly efficient 10/11. Brockport had a slight edge in corner kicks (6-3), while the Pioneers heavily led the foul count, 18-6. Both teams were also tagged with a red card during play, ending the contest with 10-on-10 play.
It was not long into play before Accetta was tasked with work, making his first save after 1:37. Utica responded with a shot on goal of their own just over a minute later, even earning a corner kick off a blocked shot just before the six-minute mark. Entering the final minutes of the first half, Utica trailed the shot-on-goal count 6-1, but the offense would soon change the course of the game. Senior
Ryan Schlachter (Phoenix, NY/Phoenix) took a shot on goal late in the 44th minute, requiring a save that rebounded its way to Cookinham, knocking the ball into the lower right corner right on the 44:00 mark. The late score allowed Utica to enter halftime up 1-0 for the second time this season.
Cookinham jumped ahead with the first shot of the second half at 1:32 after play resumed, but the hungry Golden Eagles soon started to control play. Between 47:05 and 63:12, Brockport outshot their hosts 11-1, requiring six saves. While not counting toward the shot-on-goal count, another three of these attempts went off the crossbar. The Pioneers withstood the intense pressure, but soon fell back in. During the 70th minute, a physical Pioneer challenge resulted in a yellow card, the player's second of the day, and therefore a red card and subsequent ejection. It took several minutes, but the 11v10 man-advantage allowed Brockport to reestablish their offensive presence.
The Golden Eagles used the advantage to attempt four shots, three of which required saves by Accetta. After the fourth shot attempt was blocked, Utica took advantage of the aggressive Brockport formation, sprinting up the field with a one-on-one against the goalkeeper from midfield. The initial shot attempter chased down the Pioneer attacker, pulled him down just outside the box, and was assessed a red card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity. While the resulting free kick was saved, the subsequent rebounds and offensive control gave way to another chance. Arias crossed a ball into the box, finding the head of Cookinham for his second of the game. Both squads traded shots on goal in the remaining time, but the 2-0 score stood final.
Utica men's soccer returns to action next Wednesday, October 14th, in a road matchup with Russell Sage College. Opening kickoff is set for 4:00 pm at the ACP Athletic Complex. The Pioneers have just one remaining regular-season home game, scheduled for Wednesday, October 21st, against SUNY Poly.
