COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus College men's soccer team battled Gettysburg tooth and nail in a physical introduction to Centennial Conference play on Saturday, but the Bullets were able to make a penalty kick early in the second half stand up for a 1-0 victory on Patterson Field.
Senior goalkeeper Vince Maiorino made a career-high 12 saves for Ursinus (2-3, 0-1), which put six shots of its own on frame but was unable to get one past Gettysburg keeper Thomas Keane in losing at home for the first time this season.
The Bullets (3-1-1, 1-0) – ranked seventh in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region – had several chances in the first half, including a sequence of three consecutive shots at the 17-minute mark, but Maiorino was equal to the task every time, helping Ursinus go into the break locked in a scoreless tie despite an 11-3 deficit in shots.
Gettysburg broke through just under six minutes into the second half, when the Bears were whistled for a foul in the box when a Bullet went down. That sent Henry Smith to the spot, and the senior forward slotted home into the bottom left corner of the net to open the scoring.
Pressing for an equalizer, Ursinus made the Gettysburg defense work hard to keep its clean sheet. Keane managed to get his fingertips on a powerful effort from senior captain Ryan Molyneaux in the 71st minute, deflecting the blast out for a corner.
Ursinus gained a man advantage with 3:08 remaining, when a Gettysburg player received his second yellow card of the afternoon, two of the four yellows issued during the contest. The Bears had a chance at a last-second breakthrough, gaining possession in their defensive zone before a series of long passes gave sophomore Ben Amaral a look at the goal. The forward got in behind the Bullet defense and latched onto a spectacular bicycle pass by Ryan Molyneaux, but his last-ditch effort was directed right at Keane and Gettysburg was able to hang on in another razor-thin meeting between the teams. A year ago, Ursinus was 19 seconds away from a 1-0 victory before Patrick Santini netted the game-tying goal, and the Bullets eventually prevailed in overtime.
Santini led all players with five shots and Smith added four for Gettysburg, which held a 20-13 advantage in that category. Keane registered his second collegiate shutout.
Ryan Molyneaux paced the Bears with four shots, three of which were on target, and junior Kyle Woulfe chipped in three. Ursinus posted a 9-8 edge in corner kicks, though none came to fruition. The Bears were shut out for the first time in five games to begin the 2016 campaign.
Maiorino's dozen saves were the most by an Ursinus keeper since Mike Alfieri had 13 in a 2011 game against Salisbury.
The men's soccer team looks to bounce back with a non-conference home game opposite Marywood on Wednesday, September 21 at 7:30 p.m.
