SWARTHMORE, Pa. — In a game in which the Gothic Knights held the lead for the majority of the first half, but then trailed after two quick goals for Swarthmore College in the second, the New Jersey City University men's soccer squad was able to post a pair of tallies late en route to the 3-2 comeback victory on the road in non-conference play on Tuesday night, Dec. 3, over the Garnet. A big key to the victory was sophomore
Juan Vizcaino (Clifton, N.J./Clifton) in his season debut, who played a role in both the game-tying and game-winning scores.
NJCU (5-4) trailed the Garnet (1-6-3) in chances and offensive opportunities, getting outshot 20-5 on the night. However, despite the Gothic Knights trailing 6-3 in shots on goal, all three of their on-target attempts beat the Swarthmore keeper for scores, while fifth-year netminder
Nick Linebaugh (Linden, N.J./St. Benedict's Prep) stopped five of six for his fifth victory on the season and 22nd of his career — he is now just two behind a tie for fourth all-time.
The Green and Gold got things started in a beautiful way in the 24th minute. Senior back
Anthony Salmeron (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) sent a pass to the offensive zone and found the foot of junior forward
Danny Tobon (Clifton, N.J./Clifton), who then split the defense and created some space to work with. He then sent a pass out wide to the right side of the box and found junior back
Julio Mauricio (South Plainfield, N.J./South Plainfield), who immediately sent a very well-placed cross to the near-side post. There, every inch of the 5-foot-4 frame of senior midfielder
Jason Suarez (Clifton, N.J./Clifton) leapt into the air and headed the ball down and into the back of the net for the first goal of his collegiate career.
Scoring would halt for the half, but resume this time for Swarthmore in the 51st on an own goal by the Gothic Knights. The home team then took the lead off a corner kick in the 52nd. However, just 20 seconds later, one of the Garnet players was called for his first yellow of the game. Linebaugh made two more saves and then in the 70th, that same Swarthmore player was called for another yellow, resulting in a red card ejection and forced the Garnet to play the remainder with 10 men.
Just before that card, Vizcaino subbed in for his first game action of 2023. Then, after seeing roughly 10 minutes in the first half as a late sub, junior midfielder
Lucca Cordone (Manantiales, Uruguay/IUA Punta del Este) also checked in late in the 82nd minute. Swarthmore was called for a card in the box in the 85th, which resulted in a penalty and Vizcaino scored his first tally of the season to knot it up with just under six minutes remaining.
Finally, midway through the 87th, Swarthmore committed a foul just outside the box and NJCU lined up for a free kick, where Vizcaino and senior midfielder
Thiago Duarte (Newark, N.J./Newark East Side) both lined up for some trickery. Vizcaino faked first, then a short pass fake for Duarte before Vizcaino drilled a left-footed cross that was headed on net by senior forward
Maximo Vargas (Montevideo, Uruguay/The British Schools), but saved. The rebound, however, was cleaned up and put away nicely by Cordone for the game-winner early in the 88th.
Highlights:
- Cordone's goal was his second of the season and third of his career, as well as the second game-winner of his career.
- Linebaugh has been climbing up the record books all season. In addition to his 22 wins, his 213 saves rank seventh all-time and his 12 shutouts rank sixth.
- Vizcaino, who was fourth on the team with 10 points last season, was a welcome returner for the Gothic Knights tonight.
Up Next:
Riding high following a tough non-conference victory, the Gothic Knights are scheduled to return to action for the 2023 Homecoming Game on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 7, on Robert L. McNulty Memorial Soccer Field at the Thomas M. Gerrity Athletic Complex against New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) rival Ramapo College. NJCU went 1-0-1 against the Roadrunners last season, with both games coming on the road — a regular-season 2-2 tie (Oct. 8, 2022) and a 1-0 overtime victory (Nov. 13, 2022) in the 2022 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship Quarterfinal round.
