POMONA, NJ…In a fast-paced offensive slugfest played in the rain between long-time men’s soccer rivals and two of the top programs in the Metro region, it was Richard Stockton College breaking open a 3-2 half-time score with two goals in the second half, before holding on to defeat New Jersey City University, 5-3, in a non-conference game late Wednesday night.
NJCU, ranked eighth in the region, falls to 4-2 overall, while Stockton (4-2), previous 10th in the Metro poll, won its fourth straight game. Prior to the game, the previous five regular season meetings between the teams had either ended in a tie or been decided by just one goal. NJCU defeated the Ospreys in a shootout in the 1999 New Jersey Athletic Conference quarterfinals, and Stockton returned the favor in 2001, defeating NJCU in the NJAC championship game, en route to winning the national championship.
Stockton opened a 1-0 lead at 12:01 of the first half when freshman forward Jeremy Cohen (Atco, NJ/Hammonton) scored off a deep kick from starting freshman goalkeeper Tim McKenna (Sewell, NJ/Gloucester Catholic), who earned an assist.
Junior forward CHRIS ROSENTHAL (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) scored his sixth goal of the year to tie it less than three minutes later, as sophomore midfielder RONNIE SANCHEZ (Clifton, NJ/Clifton) fed a ball into the right side of the box. ROSENTHAL, who has scored at least one goal in a game for the 10th time in 11 games dating to last season, angled a shot past McKenna at 14:55.
Cohen again put the Ospreys up by one, scoring at 20:16 off an assist from junior forward Scott Adams (Myerstown, PA/East Lebanon Co.), and 33 seconds later Stockton led 3-1, as freshman forward Matt Lewis (Bear, DE/Glasgow) notched an unassisted goal at 20:49.
Senior forward ADRIAN RUIZ (Fairview, NJ/Dickinson) made it a one-goal game at half-time when he teamed with Rosenthal at 24:50 for his first goal of the season and a 3-2 score.
The game remained that way for over 37 minutes, until 61:55 of the second half, as freshman midfielder Eric Lewis (Dover, DE/Caesar Rodney) scored from freshman midfielder Domenick Raimo (Delran, NJ/Delran).
Stockton took a commanding 5-2 lead at 68:35, as senior midfielder Dowaine Green (Neptune, NJ/Ocean Township) scored off the second assist of the game by Adams.
NJCU closed the gap to two goals just 21 seconds later (68:56), as Rosenthal was taken down in the box with a foul, and scored his seventh goal of the season on the ensuing penalty kick. It was the final goal of the game.
Stockton outshot NJCU, 20-14, including 12-7 in the second half. Senior goalkeeper BABA GUISSE (Jersey City, NJ/Lycee Eugene Delacroix, France) made nine saves for NJCU in an attempt to keep the Knights in the game. McKenna stopped four shots for the Ospreys.
