The Rams have struggled to put the ball in the net and were shut out by their two most recent opponents. (Samuel Joseph/The Ram)
By Tara Cangialosi
At the halfway point in its season, the Fordham men’s soccer team faced two tough opponents in St. John’s University and the University of Rhode Island this past week, dropping both matches 1-0.
The combination of the out-of-conference loss from St. John’s and subsequent loss against Atlantic 10 Conference rival URI puts the team’s record at 3-6-1.
In the first meeting between the two schools in nearly 18 years, Fordham and St. John’s fought to the end in both teams’ final non-conference match of the season, played on Sept. 30 at Belson Stadium in Queens. The match was added this past week, as it was originally not on the schedule for both teams.
The Rams kept the game scoreless for the first 86 minutes. Though a tough opponent, St. John’s could not penetrate Fordham’s defense, headed by seniors Ryan Cupolo at center back and senior goalkeeper Sean Brailey.
“We’ve been working on being countered in practice, and getting behind the ball as soon as we can,” Cupolo said.
The Red Storm finally managed to break through in the 87th minute when Gabriel Camara headed in a corner kick eight yards out, earning him his second goal of the season.
Camara’s late-game heroics cast a shadow over Brailey’s performance in net, as he registered a career-high nine saves in goal.
Junior Tomas Penfold tried a long shot within the final minute of the game as an attempt to tie the score, but the St. John’s keeper, Jordan Stagmiller, preserved the shutout and earned his fourth save of the day.
“We gotta keep our heads up and keep on playing — that’s all we can do,” the younger Penfold said.
The game was defined by goalkeeping, as Brailey and Stagmiller shined equally for both teams. Unfortunately, it was not enough for Fordham, as they lapsed within the crucial final minutes of the game.
The 1-0 win brought St. John’s record to 3-4-3, while the Rams dropped to 3-5-1 just before the start of A-10 Conference play.
A week later, Fordham faced its fellow Rams from the University of Rhode Island on Jack Coffey field.
Fordham came out looking strong, possesing the ball deep into URI’s end of the field. Within the first ten minutes of the game Fordham earned three corner kicks on the offensive end, but was unable to finish.
In the 32nd minute, Fordham almost got a score on a nice combination play. Senior Andres Penfold sent a behind-the-back pass toward the center of the field, leading sophomore Andy Hickey to net. However, Hickey could not get a good look, resulting in a URI save.
URI got a break following Hickey’s injury and brief departure from the game. URI’s midfield snuck a ball up the right sideline, where it was dribbled to the end line and crossed by junior Ryan Oakley. Matt Sykes was there to finish it for URI, striking the ball past a diving Brailey, and putting the opposing Rams ahead 1-0.
“We just kinda let up for a second mentally, and they were able to capitalize on it,” Cupolo said. “It was unfortunate for us, but we gotta be able to come back in situations like that and score.”
Minutes later, the ref awarded URI a penalty kick. Under supreme pressure, Brailey made the full stretch to his left to deflect the shot. He returned to his feet moments later to save the rebound shot, rallying his teammates and keeping the score at 1-0.
Following the break at halftime, Fordham did not look offensively sound. In the 53rd minute, Brailey broke up a loose ball confrontation between the 18 and six yard lines. He then left his feet in the 65th minute to punch a rocketed shot over the crossbar.
Fordham’s sense of urgency to score did not arise until very late in the game. Within the final ten minutes, the Bronx-based Rams finally began to advance the ball forward from the defensive end, setting up strikers with opportunities.
With four minutes left to play, the younger Penfold got a hold of a shot from far out, but URI’s goalkeeper, Nils Leifhelm, made the stop.
“We have struggled for a long time coming out of the half strong,” he said. “But we really have to come out better and push the team, especially when we are down 1-0 at home.”
Nearing the end of the game, freshman Jannik Loebe crossed the ball from the right side. Tomas Penfold got his head on it, but the ball sailed just over the crossbar, leaving the Rams scoreless with less than a minute to play.
“We had a lot of big opportunities in the second half to score, but we just didn’t finish them” Loebe said. “We just have to keep working to improve our opportunities and try to score the next time.”
The Rams’ final shot came as the clock ran down. Senior Eric Walano powered the ball toward the net, but it sailed high and wide of the goal, awarding URI the 1-0 victory.
Fordham will continue its in-conference schedule against fellow A-10 Conference opponents for the remainder of the regular season.
The Rams are back in action next Friday, Oct. 10 when they travel to Philadelphia to take on La Salle University at 7 p.m.
__________
Tara Cangialosi is the Web Editor for The Fordham Ram.
The Fordham Ram 
