Short-Handed Warriors Struggle in Final Regular Season Game

The Vaughn College men's soccer team squarred off against the Panthers from Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) on Saturday, October 20. Unfortunately for the Warriors they only had 11 available players for their final regular season contest. The men's soccer team had a lot of adversities to overcome in their quest to finish the season with the best record in program history. One of the biggest challenges the Warriors faced during their final Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) match was playing the game without any of their goalkeepers making the trip to ACPHS. 

Jovan Gonzalez (New York, NY) made the start to defend the goal for the Warriors. This was the first time that the freshman midfielder/defensive back was asked to play the goalie position this season. Gonzalez did an amazing job for his first ever game as a goalkeeper. He finished the match with nine saves, tied for most saves in a single game by a Warriors' goalkeeper this season. Starting goalkeeper Hussein Saleh (Maspeth, NY) recorded nine saves in a tough loss to the College of New Rochelle earlier in the year. The Warriors battled and gave great effort throughout the entire match but were outmanned and overwhlemed by the full squad of the ACPHS Panthers. 

The Warriors ended their season with a huge loss, but gained the respect from their opponents because of their ability to compete despite all the odds stacked against them before the start of the game. The men's soccer team finished their season with a 1-5 record in the HVIAC and 4-5 overall. The Warriors only have two seniors graduating from their young talented team. They will look to continue to build chemistry and add a few solid pieces to the roster during the off-season.