After its first road win of the season, the Stony Brook men’s soccer team’s shot at a regular-season title is alive and well.
Traveling their longest distance yet this year proved not to disparage the Seawolves (5-3-3, 4-0-2 CAA), who defeated the Charleston Cougars (2-4-5, 1-2-2 CAA) in South Carolina on Saturday. A moment of brilliance from midfielder Trevor Harrison and forward Jonas Bičkus gave Stony Brook the tally it needed for the 1-0 win.
The Seawolves began the match on their back foot. They allowed Charleston the majority of possession, which the Cougars used to generate scoring opportunities. The home side had five shots through the first 37 minutes of the game, with four landing on the net. However, as he has been all season, goalkeeper Edmond Kaiser was equal to the task and saved all the attempts that came his way.
While going against the run of play, Stony Brook broke the ice in the 39th minute. Harrison intercepted a pass from Charleston midfielder Leonardo D’Ambrosio and drove down the pitch. In a cloud of five defenders, Harrison glided through the first four and dribbled past the final one to set up a one-on-one opportunity with Charleston goalkeeper Eric Wnorowski. Before Harrison could get his shot off, Charleston midfielder Conner Walmsley ran him over just outside the box and was shown a red card.
On the free kick, Bičkus stood behind the ball while midfielder Lorenzo Selini — with his back turned to the goal — was placed in front of it. Selini rolled the ball to his left for Bičkus, who rifled a shot with a running start that Wnorowski could not keep out, giving the Seawolves a 1-0 lead that they did not relinquish.
Despite being down both a goal and a man for the entire second half, the Cougars fought tooth and nail to rescue points as their fight for a playoff spot continued. In the 50th minute, Charleston forward Peter Thomas drove to the end line and delivered a cross that fell to defender Lucas Cedermark. Stony Brook’s defense stood tall, as defender Jon Jelercic blocked Cedermark’s header and fellow defender Jacson Coppack chipped the loose ball back to Kaiser.
In the 66th minute, a mistake by Kaiser nearly cost the Seawolves when he was late to react to a free kick that reached their box. Thomas beat him to it and was left with a wide open net, but defender Bas van Beckhoven came to the rescue and cleared the ball.
Van Beckhoven’s heroic play allowed Stony Brook to hold onto the lead. The Seawolves outshot the Cougars 12-11, making this the first time this year that they attempted more shots than a Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) opponent. They also landed more shots on goal (seven) than their opponent (four).
Bičkus led the team with four shots and became the squad’s leading scorer with his sixth goal of the season. He and midfielder Amit Magoz co-led the team with two shots on goal apiece. Forwards Olsen Aluc, Johan Velez and Caleb Danquah each landed one shot on target. Selini recorded his third assist of 2023.
Thomas led Charleston with three shots, while D’Ambrosio and Cedermark had two apiece.
Kaiser’s four first-half saves were the only ones he was forced to make, while Wnorowski finished with six stops.
Stony Brook remains atop of the CAA table with 14 points. Before it returns to conference action, the Seawolves will play a pair of nonconference contests. First, they will host the Le Moyne Dolphins on Wednesday at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium. The Dolphins are 1-5-4 on the year and are coming off a 2-0 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson. Opening kickoff is set for 6:31 p.m.