JERSEY CITY, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | John Jay College capitalized on a pair of first half goalkeeping mistakes and despite being outshot by a nearly 3-to-1 margin, outlasted New Jersey City University, 2-1, in a non-conference men's soccer game on October 16 at the Robert L. McNulty Soccer Field.
 
NJCU (4-9-2) outshot the Bloodhounds (8-6-0) overall, 29-10—including a staggering 20-3 margin in a dominant second half, but the Gothic Knights lost their seventh in a row.
 
Junior back Ron Jones (Montclair, NJ/Montclair) scored his team-best fifth goal of the season in the 67th minute to give the Knights some life off a beautiful ball from freshman back Mike Almeida (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) to snap a 329:43 scoreless drought over more than three games.
 
Freshman midfielder James Haddad (Richmond, N.Y.) and senior midfielder Curtis Harbers (Sydney, Australia) scored unassisted goals in the 13th and 27th minutes, respectively.
 
John Jay, the second place team in the CUNYAC conference, received five saves from senior goalkeeper Alexandros Taliotis (Limassol, Cyprus) and a big team save in the second half by junior back Cristian Urgiles (Brooklyn, N.Y.).
 
Freshman Aldahir Cazun (Jersey City, NJ/Dickinson), the team's No. 2 goalkeeper, played the final 60:21 in goal, stopping three shots without giving up a goal in relief of rookie goalkeeper Eric Lopes Silva (Newark, NJ/Newark East Side). NJCU also had a team save by junior back Edwin Carbajal (Rahway, NJ/Rahway).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
In the fifth minute, John Jay nearly scored off a corner kick when sophomore forward Samboudiang Faye (Dakar, Senegal) headed a ball from the middle of the box towards the left post before Carbajal cleared the ball off the line for a team save.
 
John Jay scored on the first of two mistakes midway through the 13th minute. On a long ball played upfield, Lopes Silva tried to come 10 yards out of the box to head away a 50-50 opportunity but misplayed it. The ball caromed on to the right wing and Haddad got to the loose ball before the NJCU defense could recover for an easy tap into an empty net.
 
Another mistake led to John Jay's second goal in the early 27th minute. Under pressure, NJCU's defense played the ball back to Lopes Silva inside the six-yard box but he had an errant first touch and before he could release the ball, Harbers, who challenged the play, picked it off his foot and tucked the steal into the net for an easy tally and a 2-0 advantage at the half. NJCU outshot JJC, 9-7, in the first 45 minutes.
 
In the 52nd minute, NJCU had a chance to get on the board when rookie back Nelson Segovia (North Bergen, NJ/North Bergen)'s header off a corner was on goal but a team save off of the chest of Urgiles standing on the goal line prevented it.
 
NJCU did finally strike in the 67th minute. A free kick from 25 yards out on the left wing by sophomore center mid Jose Salazar (Medellin, Colombia/Union City) curled to the right endline. Almeida, who earned his first collegiate assist, centered it with a one-touch inside the six. Jones' first shot was initially blocked by Taliotis, but he immediately tucked the rebound into the open net.
 
NJCU kept pressing and had four shots blocked in succession in the 66th minute. NJCU had 11 of the first 12 shots of the second half.
 
Taliotis made a two-handed save high up against the near left post on a shot by sophomore back Douglas Reyes (Union City, NJ/Union City) in the 74th minute and two shots were blocked in a row in the 78th minute. NJCU's last major opportunity in the 87th minute was thwarted when Taliotis dove towards the far right post to prevent senior center back Luis Cruz (Princeton, NJ/West Windsor-Plainsboro South), who pushed up to forward in the second half, from notching the equalizer.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series: 18th meeting; NJCU leads the all-time series, 15-3 (87-14 goal differential). John Jay has won the last two meetings.
• NJCU has been outscored 15-5 in the first half this season.

 
UP NEXT:

• NJCU plays its fourth straight home game on Wednesday, October 18 (3 p.m.) when it hosts Moravian College in a non-conference game. The Greyhounds, members of the Landmark Conference, are 6-4-3 overall (1-2-2 Landmark), and winless in their last five games (0-3-2). It will be only the second meeting between the schools; Moravian won last year's matchup in Bethlehem, Pa., 1-0., on October 19, 2016. Junior Ron Jones (Montclair, NJ/Montclair), NJCU's leading scorer this season with five goals after transferring this summer from Moravian, had four shots for the Greyhounds in that win.

 
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