UTICA, NY - Utica University's men's soccer team opened its third week of the season by hosting the SUNY Delhi Broncos in Utica's final non-conference matchup of the season. The Pioneers battled in another closely fought contest, but it was the visiting Broncos with a late strike to leave with the win. The orange and blue will look to respond in a big Empire 8 conference matchup this coming Saturday at SUNY Geneseo.
The teams combined for 23 total shot attempts, but put just four on target. The tightly contested, physical battle gave way to seven total blocked shots in the game. Utica accounted for 11 of the shot attempts and led the shots on goal battle 3-1. Of these shots on target, each was taken by a separate Pioneer, consisting of sophomores
Logan Mitchell (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna) and
Henry Schweitzer (Clinton, NY/Clinton), and junior
Griffin Condit (Carlsbad, CA/Carlsbad). The home squad continued its half-and-half trend for goalkeepers, returning to the one-two punch of seniors
Zachary Accetta (Rocky Point, NY/Rocky Point) and
Asim Gacic (Utica, NY/Thomas R. Proctor). Accetta did not face a shot on target in his 45:00, while Gacic was in for the game-winner, his only shot on goal.
Both squads played consistently in both halves, with the shot attempts seeing a 6-5 split in favor of Utica in the opening half. The Broncos failed to put a shot on target during this time, while the orange and blue put two on goal. Both came shortly before the halftime break, with Schweitzer taking the first at the 40:22 mark. The save on Schweitzer's shot gave way to a corner kick, which the Pioneers were able to turn into a shot by Mitchell 23 seconds after Schweitzer. Despite the pressure, Utica entered the break tied 0-0, the fifth time through six games this season.
Delhi opened with some early shots in the second half, taking three attempts within the first 7:14 of the second half, but Utica stood tall, blocking two and having the other go off-target. Utica's shot came from Condit at the 58:10 mark, courtesy of a long ball free kick that faded toward the goal. The Broncos continued to apply pressure in the back half of the game, eventually breaking through with 9:42 remaining in the contest. Delhi's Timothy Donner was responsible for a long throw-in from near the Broncos' bench, finding the head of his teammate Shervens Dufleurant inside the penalty area. His headed ball found Sean Szczcotka, who corralled the ball and took a quick left-footed shot, which found its way into the upper-right corner of the goal. Utica tried to strike back, earning two corner kicks and taking three shots in the remaining time, but none found their way on target.
The final with Delhi concludes Utica's non-conference schedule for the 2026 season. The Pioneers begin their Empire 8 conference slate with a road matchup against the SUNY Geneseo Knights this coming Saturday, September 19th. Utica will look to avenge a season-ending loss in the E8 Semifinals last fall that saw the eventual E8 Champion Knights defeat Utica in a penalty kick shootout. Opening kickoff is set for 4:00 pm at Geneseo's College Stadium.
