Box Score
NEW LONDON, Conn. — Eastern Connecticut State men's soccer clutched a decisive victory after a dominant second half, scoring four unanswered goals to turn a 1-1 halftime tie into a commanding 5-1 victory over Mitchell College, with sophomore
Yahya Kardad capping the scoring and extending his newcomer hot streak with a clean strike and a complementary assist, Monday afternoon at Alumni Field.
Game Information:
- Score: Eastern Connecticut State University 5, Mitchell College 1
- Records: Eastern (2-0-0), Mitchell College (0-1-0)
- Location: New London, CT (Alumni Field)
Key Moments:
- Mitchell's Diego Chavez opened the score summary early with a powerful long shot, which soared quickly passed Eastern's keeper for a decisive goal at only the third minute mark.
- Eastern defenders, in an attempt to turn the tide, found Niall O'Brien (Guilford) just outside the box before a Mitchell defender attempted to regain possession. It was for naught, as O'Brien quickly recovered, capitalizing on his open lane, drawing the goalkeeper out, and sending a fast ball to the back of the net, Eastern's first shot on target of the night.
- Off an Eastern free kick, the Warriors' ball swiftly found its way into the box, bouncing off playmaker Yahya Kardad (Wallingford), into the possession of Sebastian Kadlof (Clinton), who fired a shot off the post that seamlessly landed at the feet of Dominick Bugnacki (Coventry) for a flawless left-foot finish into the netting.
- Shortly after the second goal, Eastern found its luck with another. Off a deep distributed cross from Kardad, the ball remained loose in the box, finding the footing of Eastern's Kadlof, who quickly fired it toward goal. The ball was shortly disrupted by a Mitchell defender, who birthed the third goal, in an attempt to clear, the ball chipping off his heel and floating into the back of the net.
- Off an Eastern defensive clearance, Kardad regained possession with a long dribble, setting his sights on an open Warrior for a quick touch and receive, firing a searing shot off the post that found the positioning of Ben Syphrett (Ledyard), who quickly recovered the ball and sent a shot on target for goal number four.
- Lastly, forcing a critical Mitchell turnover in Eastern territory, Kadlof found himself in possession again, dribbling through Mariners' traffic and sliding a pass to Yahya Kardad on his left for a powerful shot into the back right corner of the net for the fifth and final Warrior goal of the night.
Scoring Summary:
- 03:02 – Diego Chavez put Mitchell on the board early with an unassisted goal, to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead just three minutes into regulation.
- 14:18 – Eastern's Niall O'Brien answered back for the Warriors, effortlessly slotting an unassisted strike into the netting, leveling out the game at 1-1, heading into the break.
- 49:25 – Dominick Bugnacki broke the extended deadlock, finishing off a Kadlof pass, sending the ball right into the bottom corner of the net, giving Eastern their first lead of the day.
- 49:25 – Eastern extended their lead when a Mitchell defender attempted to clear the ball. Inadvertently sent it past his own keeper, putting the Warriors up 3-1, swinging the game in Eastern's control.
- 56:04 – Ben Syphrett connected on a pass from Yahya Kardad, firing a shot into the goal to secure Eastern's fourth good one, extending the match out of reach at 4-1.
- 63:44 – Yahya Kardad capped off the scoring for Eastern, converting a set-up from Kadlof into a clean strike to the right corner, sealing Eastern's 5-1 victory.
Game Notes:
- Eastern outscored Mitchell by four, resulting in a 5-1 final.
- Eastern goalkeeper Jack Harmon (Manasquan, NJ) gathered one save and one goal allowed in the match, totaling 67 minutes of game play.
- Eastern sophomore transfer goalkeeper Aidan Peterson (Cheshire) made his first career appearance at Eastern, gathering 22 minutes in goal for the match, making one save on one shot faced.
- Dominick Bugnacki and Niall O'Brien led the Warriors in shots (4) and SOG (2), each securing one goal.
- Yahya Kardad secured one goal and one assist against the Mariners.
- Sebastian Kadlof totaled two assists, his first multi-assist game of the season.
- Ben Syphrett gathered one lone shot on target, resulting in a goal.
- Eastern led the offensive push with 21 shots to Mitchell's four.
- Eastern put a total of eight shots on goal, while Mitchell trailed with three.
- Corner kicks leaned in favor of the Warriors (9) while the Mariners gathered zero.
- No cards were reported during the match, though Eastern went away with six fouls to Mitchell's nine.
- Eastern leads the all-time series which dates back to 2012, 6-0-0, having outscored the Mariners 21-2.
Up Next:
Eastern Connecticut State University Men's soccer will go on to face Emerson College, Friday, September 5th, at 6:00 PM EST.
