Following their win on Sept. 7 against Elmira College, the 3-0-1 Oswego State men’s soccer team began their back-to-back weekend against the 2-2 Rochester Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Engineers.

To start the first half of this game, the Lakers won the time of possession, creating multiple changes to score with shots from midfielder Jason Wuytack and forward Tajay Ellis. However, after failing to capitalize on these scoring opportunities, RPI netted the first goal of the game at the 24-minute mark.

With both defenses playing aggressively, scoring chances were not coming often. Only three shots on net combined were allowed in the first half, which ended with a score of 1-0.

The Lakers came into the second half firing shots on net from forward Matthew Sturman and midfielder HaJoo Lee within the first minute. The Lakers’ offense continued to apply pressure, getting three more shots, but were still unable to finish. 

Finally, after a foul against RPI, Lakers’ Tajay Ellis tied it up 1-1 off of a penalty kick at the 67-minute mark.

The Lakers were able to keep the momentum on their side, firing three shots on net, two by forward Scout McCumiskey and the other by midfielder Ethan Caruana, all three saved by RPI. Then, at the 83-minute mark, Lakers’ midfielder Benjamin Brooks buries it off the feed from Kyle Ghenrich, giving the Lakers the 2-1 lead. 

As time was run ning out, RPI was looking to tie it up with one last effort but was ultimately stopped after the clutch save by Lakers goalkeeper Kyle Rose with about two minutes left in the game, which gave Rose his fourth save of the game.

The Lakers were able to come away successfully defending their home turf, winning 2-1 and improving their record to 4-0-1. 

The Lakers then made their way to face off against the SUNY Delhi Broncos, where they dominated the entire game, winning 4-1.

 The Lakers’ offense started strong, getting multiple shots up in the opening minutes. Then, at the 18-minute mark, Gehnrich was able to give the Lakers the 1-0 lead off of a penalty kick. The Lakers remained in control, not allowing the Broncos to generate any scoring opportunities. Following this, McCumiskey was able to extend the lead to 2-0 after burying one in from the top of the box at the 39-minute mark. 

The Lakers went into halftime with all the momentum, outshooting their opponent 10-3 and holding a two-goal lead. 

The Lakers continued to dominate, as Sturman was able to score an unassisted goal just three minutes into the half, giving the Lakers a 3-0 lead at the 48 minute mark. 

The Lakers’ offense was not slowing down despite having this comfortable lead, continuing to create scoring opportunities with shots on goal from Wuytack and Brooks. 

As time was running out, Hamid Alhamid put the icing on the cake as he fired in his first ever goal in a Lakers uniform off the assist from Luke Brosokas, giving the Lakers a 4-0 lead at the 78 minute mark.

The Broncos were narrowly able to avoid the shutout, scoring a last second goal, with the score ending in a 4-1 Lakers win.

Although it was a dominant performance by the offense, the Lakers’ defense should not be overlooked as they played a pivotal role in this win, not allowing a single shot on net for the entire game up until the last second goal when the game was already put away.

The Lakers remain undefeated as they come out of their back-to-back weekend 2-0, improving their record to 5-0-1. It was the ultimate team effort as 6 different players scored throughout the weekend. In these two games, the defense only allowed six shots on goal, and only a combined 2 goals. 

The Lakers hope to continue their undefeated streak, as they face Skidmore College on Sept. 21.

Photo by: Oswego Athletics