The Canisius College men's soccer cruised to a 4-1 victory against conference foe Rider on an extremely windy afternoon at the Demske Sports Complex on Wednesday. With the win, the Griffs improve to 6-3-2 on the season and 1-1-1 against MAAC foes, while the Broncs drop to 4-4-2 and 1-2-0 in conference play.
“The windy conditions made it a difficult environment to play today,” said Canisius head coach Dermot McGrane. “I thought our players managed the game well when we played into the wind in the first half, which made our task easier in the second half when we had the wind to our back. It was an impressive victory at this stage of the season and now we'll look to carry this momentum into Saturday's game against Iona.”
Seniors Derek Maier and Asani Samuels, junior Chris Berardi and freshman Mathew Santos all scored for Canisius in the winning effort.
Junior Andrew Coughlin earned the victory in net, posting four saves for the Griffs.
Despite playing into the tough wind in the first half, Canisius took a 2-1 lead into the locker room. Maier opened the scoring for the Griffs in the 15th minute of play, netting his third goal of the season. Samuels sent a cross into the box and near the end line, junior Nicoló Baudo knocked the ball backwards to Maier. The senior forward then finished for a lead Canisius would not relinquish.
Santos doubled the Canisius advantage to two with his second goal of his rookie campaign in the 33rd minute. Off of passes from Baudo and Berardi, Santos scored from the corner of the box and found the opposite side netting for a 2-0 advantage.
Rider pulled one back in the 40th minute when Florian Valot got past the Canisius defense and buried his shot for the 2-1 score at the half.
Aided by a Rider red card, Canisius dominated the second half and outshot the Broncs, 20-2, in the second 45 minutes of action. Berardi helped the Griffs reclaim their two-goal advantage in the 56th minute of play with his first tally of the season. Freshman midfielder Lucian Preis sent a cross that found Berardi on the back post. The junior then knocked the ball in from close range for the 3-1 lead.
The Griffs stretched their advantage to three when Samuels netted the game's final goal. Freshman defender Eric Strauchen crossed the ball and Samuels connected with his feet for his team-leading fifth tally of the season. Santos also registered an assist on the goal for the 4-1 final score.
Canisius finished the game with a 29-9 advantage in shots, including a 16-5 edge in shots on goal. The Griffs also had seven corner kicks to just four for the Broncs.
David Pastuna and Jimmy Quilter combined to make 12 saves in net for Rider.
Canisius looks to continue its winning ways in MAAC play with a road contest against Iona on Saturday. The schools are set to meet in New Rochelle, N.Y. at 4 p.m.
Game Notes: The game will be televised on Time Warner Cable Sports on Thursday at 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. (Ch. 26 in Buffalo) … The three-goal margin of victory is the largest for the Griffs in MAAC play in four years under McGrane and the largest conference win since a 4-0 victory against Manhattan on Oct. 15, 2010 … The three-goal win was also just the second Canisius game this season to be decided by more than one tally … The assist for Strauchen was the first point of his collegiate career … Berardi and Santos both recorded a personal-best three points in the win, while Samuels posted three points for the second time in his career … Canisius extended its school-record home unbeaten streak to eight games (6-0-2), dating back to last season.
