Four Teams Advance to Semifinals of 2007 MAAC Men's Soccer Championship
MAAC Sports
Lake Buena Vista, Fla. ? Four teams have advanced to the semifinals of the 2007 MAAC Men's Soccer Championship at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex.
Top-seeded Loyola College will now face #4 Canisius College at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 17, while #2 Saint Peter's will take on #3 Fairfield at 1:30 p.m.
The Stags stay alive to defend their title as they earned a 2-1 victory for sixth-seed Marist College. Sam Bailey scored the first goal of the day for Fairfield with a direct shot from 22 yards out at the 4:24 mark. The Red Foxes then tied the game with a penalty kick by Shareif Ali at the 35:59 mark. Bailey went on to score two more goals in the second half, one on a penalty kick, to send his team into the second round.
In the second game of the morning, Saint Peter's took a 2-1 overtime win over #7 Niagara University. After a scoreless first half, Niagara got on the scoreboard first, thanks to a goal by Matthew Durand at the 61:08 mark. Saint Peter’s Murphy Wiredu evened the score with just over 10 minutes left in regulation, forcing the extra stanza. Less than two minutes into the overtime period, Udi Naim knocked the game-winning shot into the left corner of the net, with help from Chris DeAbreu.
In the first of two afternoon games, Loyola shutout #8 Siena College, 2-0. Freshman Phil Bannister recorded the first goal at the 37:20 mark off a rebound. Fellow rookie Eddie Dines then sealed the win for the Greyhounds, netting a pass from Julian Castillo with just over 20 minutes left in the game. Milos Kocic made three saves in his 13th shutout this season.
Canisius closed out the day with a 2-0 victory over fifth-seeded Iona College. Chris Carpenter scored the first goal for the Griffs when he took a pass on right side of box from Mariano Sapien and found the back of the net in the bottom left corner. Then, with just two seconds remaining in the game, Brendan Brody lofted a pass from Alan McGreal over the keeper’s head to end the contest.
The winner of the 2007 MAAC Men's Soccer Championship will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship.