WAYNE, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) |The New Jersey City University men's soccer team and William Paterson University played more than 68 minutes of scoreless action before the Pioneers broke through with the only goal of the game in a 1-0 New Jersey Athletic Conference decision on September 28 at Pioneer Soccer Park.
 
NJCU (9-2-0, 0-2-0 NJAC) dropped its second in a row in NJAC play after a 9-0-0 start to the season but didn't go down without a fight, putting three shots on goal in the final two minutes, including two near-misses in the final five seconds. William Paterson improved to 4-3-2, 1-0-1 NJAC. WP outshot NJCU, 21-13, although it was even 12-12 in the second half.
 
In defeat, junior goalkeeper Aldahir Cazun (Jersey City, NJ/Dickinson) tied his career high for the second time this season with 13 saves, making six in a scoreless first 45 minutes and seven in the second half. He smothered a penalty kick by junior midfielder Dromo Quaye (North Plainfield, N.J.) in the 82nd minute to keep it a 1-0 game.
 
The Pioneers came out on the front foot, dominating most of the scoring chances of the first half, outshooting the Gothic Knights, 9-1, in the first 45 minutes, but couldn't put one past Cazun over the scoreless opening half.
 
In the second half, it was the Knights who drew the first save, with sophomore forward Edric De Paula (Blairstown, NJ/Newark Tech) putting a shot on frame in the 48th minute, resulting in the first save of the match from freshman keeper Thomas Hatch (Kinnelon, N.J.). Hatch finished with seven saves.
 
NJCU had an opportunity to go on top 12 minutes into the second half when an NJCU shot was blocked with a hand ball in the center of the box. Senior center midfielder Joe Burgos (Hackensack, NJ/St. Benedict's Prep), the NCAA Division III National Player of the Week on September 10, was awarded a penalty kick, but Hatch made a diving stop to deny the Gothic Knights.
 
Paterson turned the pressure up after the initial Knights' push, though, and after a flurry of saves just a few minutes prior, Cazun could only keep the Pioneers off the board for so long, with sophomore mid Ryan Goggins (Hazlet, N.J.) and freshman forward Yachine Wahnon (High Bridge, N.J.) using a pair of quick touches to set up freshman forward Osei Agyemang (Parlin, N.J.) for his second goal of the season—what would end up being the lone goal of the match.

The Knights were not without chances to tie things up, especially right at the final gun, as the Knights frontline put their best attack forward off a corner kick in the final seconds of the match looking to force overtime. First De Paula, and then senior midfielder Koshane Marshall (Montclair, NJ/Montclair), both put shots on frame in the final five seconds, with De Paula's attempt needing to be cleared off the line with a William Paterson defensive team save to keep the Knights off the board and secure the 1-0 victory.
 
OF NOTE:

• Series: 62nd meeting; William Paterson leads all-time, 38-20-4. It was the second year in a row and third time in four years that WP prevailed in a one-goal game.
• Marshall led the Knights with three shots, all on target, while De Paula had a pair of shots on target as a sub.
• Cazun once again tied his career-high for saves with 13, a figure he has now reached twice in 2019, as he also had 13 saves in the Knights' NJAC opener against Ramapo last week. Cazun also had 13 saves at Rowan on September 16, 2017. It was his fifth career effort of 10 or more saves.
• William Paterson had a 10-2 edge in corners in the game, including 5-0 in the opening half.

 
UP NEXT:

• The Knights have their first mid-week NJAC action of the season, hosting Kean University (5-4-1, 0-1-1 NJAC) on Wednesday, October 2 at 3:30 p.m. at the Robert L. McNulty Memorial Soccer Field.

 
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