Bobcats Put Timberwolves to Sleep

Paul Smiths, NY - The Paul Smith's College men's soccer team gave fans a thrilling finish on Friday night as they came from behind and beat SUNY Adirondack in front of a raucous crowd.  It is the first time in Coach Luzzi and Coach Walton's tenure that the men's and women's teams have both won at home on opening weekend.  Building on the successes from last year, the Bobcats were firing on all cylinders in the second half against the Timberwolves.

SUNY Adirondack got on the board first as Garrett Hedge capitalized on a rebound from Josh Ellis.  The Timberwolves made it 2-0 10 minutes later as Matt Brandes sent another into the netting, assisted by John Buckley.  But that's all that senior goalkeeper Steven Donnelly (Geneseo) would give up, as the Bobcats had a comeback on their minds.

An outstanding individual effort from Treyantae Leak (Troy, NY) put Paul Smith's College on the board just 1 minute after going down 2-0.  His tenacity and hunger for the ball resulted in a spot kick after being taken down by the SUNY ADK defender just inside the corner of the 18-yard-box.  He converted easily on the PK, sliding the ball into the lower left corner with a perfectly placed shot. 

The second half proved to be the decider, as the Bobcats began to really control play with 60% possession.  15 minutes into the final frame, freshman Nick Grover (Batavia, NY) in his first collegiate game tied the score at 2-2, with an assist coming from Adam Holt (Spencerport, NY).  The pressure and excitement continued to build with both teams having chances over the final 30 minutes.  It was the Bobcats who would strike on a set play that would make Jurgen Klopp shed a tear.  Ben Green (Naples, NY) unleashed his long throw-in from 15 yards from the touchline directly to the feet of senior midfielder Marvis Nosa (Bronx, NY) with 6 minutes left to play.  Nosa slipped it in on the weak side and then celebrated in the corner with the Bobcats on the field and the Smitty contingency in the corner that represented the more than 300 fans in attendance. 

The Bobcats would hold out over the final minutes as the whistle blew, giving Paul Smith's College the 3-2 home win.  Donnelly ended the night with 10 saves, while Kyle Fitzgerald from SUNY ADK ended with 14. 

Speaking after the game, Head Coach Zack Luzzi looked back on the big win.  "I was worried when we went down 0-2 early, but I told the guys to be patient and work hard.  They did exactly that and found the tying goal and game winner in the 2^nd half like they had planned it the whole time.  We had a couple of freshmen step up and play a big part in the game and it was awesome to see Marvis Nosa back in his late season form from last year."  Nosa earned YSCC Men's Soccer Player of the Year last season, finishing strong with 12 goals and 1 assist for 25 points and 4 game winners.  Friday night's final goal adds another to the game winner category for the senior from the Bronx.  Continued Luzzi, "Through and through this was a team win – we had to dig deep on the bench and make strategic subs when we could.  I couldn't be more proud of this team after a win like that."

The Bobcats are on the road this coming weekend, playing on Saturday 9/3 at 1pm vs. NVU Lyndon and Sunday 9/4 at 1pm vs. NVU Johnson.  For more information, follow Smitty_nation and paulsmithsmsoc on Instagram.