Ahkeem Bailey scored the go-ahead goal in the 82nd minute (81:03) to lead the Warriors of Vaughn College to a 3-2 victory over the Berkeley College New York men's soccer team on Wednesday evening at Aviator Field in Brooklyn, NY. The match – a Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest – was tightly contested throughout, with many thrilling moments. For Vaughn College – the match served as its season opener. The Knights dropped to 2-4 with the loss, and 2-1 in conference play.
The Warriors struck early on in this one, netting a goal just 2:49 into the match to grab a 1-0 advantage. Jevoy James received a gorgeous lead pass from teammate Kevyn Davis before blasting a shot that trickled past Knights netminder Samuel Nortey. A little over 10 minutes later, Denis Moshchenko helped push his team's edge to two goals when he collected another nifty long ball pass from Davis before blasting a ball into the net. At that juncture, things didn't look promising for the Knights.
Berkeley College would get back in the game in the latter stages of the opening stanza though, as standout Ali Dawha would score his ninth goal of the season off of a pass frm Victor Marotta to pull his team to within a goal at 2-1. The teams would break for the half with that aforementioned score holding firm.
Early on in the second half – in the 53rd minute – Dawha would strike again, notching a tally by blasting a free kick into the net from 30 yards out to even the game at two goals apiece.
The game would remain 2-2 over the ensuing 28 minutes, until Vaughn College's Bailey would score the game-winner at 81:03. Moshchenko would pick up an assist on the score.
Vaughn College held a 13-9 edge in the shots department, while also leading 5-4 in corner kick opportunities.
Samuel Nortey and Osvin Videz Vasquez split time in goal for the Knights, with Nortey playing the first half, and Vasquez manning the net for the second session.
The Knights will look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon as they take to the road to battle SUNY Delhi. Start-time for that contest is scheduled for 1:00pm.
