After suffering their first loss of the season to Jefferson University, the New Haven men’s soccer team looked to regroup in their first NE-10 conference matchup against the Saint Anselm Hawks on Saturday, Sept. 16. The Chargers fought from behind in order to finish in a tie with Saint Anselm at 2-2.
In an intense and physical game with a total of 26 fouls, defense reigned supreme in the first half with a total of five shots, all in the Chargers’ favor. From there, New Haven allowed six shots in the second half but added another five of their own. The Chargers consistently applied pressure from the start, but could not get anything going offensively until the second half.
The second half saw Saint Anselm take control of the game as they flipped the script when midfielder James Poschmann scored the first goal of the game in the 49th minute. Saint Anselm doubled their lead in the 71st minute as forward Zach Verow’s shot was just out of Chargers goalkeeper Gianluca Cerosimo’s reach.
Forward Alexander Gunnarson and the Chargers answered right back a minute later as midfielder Erik Cedeberg assisted Gunnarson to get New Haven on the board. In the 78th minute, Augustus McGiff went around multiple defenders to assist Sean Lane-Turnbull to even the score at two apiece.
Defense was the name of the game as the Chargers only allowed a total of six shots, four being on goal, along with two saves from Cerosimo. It was a slow start offensively as the Chargers were outshot in shots on goal 4-3, but it was enough to end the game in a tie at 2-2.
The Chargers are now 2-1-1 on the season as they travel to Southern Connecticut State University on Tuesday, Sept. 19. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. as the Chargers look to get back in the win column. More information can be found at newhavenchargers.com.