WASHINGTON, D.C. — In search of a victory to close the regular-season at the .500 mark, the New Jersey City University men's soccer team accomplished just that on Tuesday evening, Nov. 2. The Gothic Knights traveled down to the Nation's Capital and squared off with non-conference foe Gallaudet University. NJCU managed to take down the hosting Bison 5-2, led by sophomore forward Maximo Vargas' (Montevideo, Uruguay/The British Schools) two-goal effort.

Jersey City (9-9-1) was in need of a victory to close out the regular-season in order to be eligible for the 2021 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships — the selections to the ECAC Tournament will be released next week after the NCAA Division III Championship Field of 64 is announced — and the Gothic Knights got the job done against Gallaudet (2-11). NJCU traveled all the way down to D.C. and handled its business, outshooting the Bison 21-8 overall, including 12-6 in on-target attempts.

The Gothic Knights took the early 1-0 lead, ended the first half up 2-0 after a goal with less then 10 seconds on the clock and then jumped out to a 4-0 lead with just over 15 minutes left before the final whistle blew in the 5-2 victory. Vargas scored a pair and ended the regular-season with a team-best 10 goals and 22 points. He ranked fifth in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) in both categories.

Things got started in the sixth minute when rookie Jean Cueva (Guayaquil, Ecuador/Colegio ANAI) recovered a loose ball in front of the home net and beat the netminder low for his second of the year to make it 1-0. NJCU outshot Gallaudet 10-2 from that point on until the 45th minute when the next shot, taken by sophomore forward Gabe Cruz (Colonia, N.J./Colonia), beat the Bison keeper to make it 2-0.

After only having to make one save in the first half, senior goalkeeper Aldahir Cazun (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson) was releived by classmate Nick Linebaugh (Linden, N.J./St. Benedict's Prep) in the second, and the latter started off with a pair of saves in the early going to keep the score the same before Vargas netted his first of the night in the 70th. Sophomore midfielder Alvaro Cardozo (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) found Vargas down the right side and the latter was able net his ninth of the year to make it 3-0. A few short minutes later in the 74th, Vargas scored once again on his very next shot. Junior Ryan Evande (Hackensack, N.J./Hackensack) took the free kick, the ball was headed by Cardozo right to Vargas who made it 4-0.

Seconds later after the restart, Gallaudet got on the board via an own goal by the Gothic Knights — an errant pass over Linebaugh's head — and then, following a red card on sophomore back Oscar Garcia (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson), the Bison made it 4-2 in the 75th with a score off a free kick to the lower left. Fortunately, NJCU scored on its next shot attempt in the 82nd when senior midfielder Samuel Ansah (East Orange, N.J./Newark Tech) scored his first of the season to make it 5-2, taking the pass from freshman Brandon Loja (Union City, N.J./Union City) and scoring on the break.

Up Next:
As mentioned, the Gothic Knights — now at .500 on the year — are eligible for ECAC Championships. The organization will make their postseason tournament selections following the NCAA's announcement next Monday, Nov. 8. Until then, Jersey City waits to see if its season will continue.