Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College men's soccer team nearly erased a 2-0 second-half deficit, but their comeback effort fell short as EC was defeated 3-1 by visiting Ithaca College.
Jordan Dougherty '16 made eight saves in the loss.
The Bombers got on the board early as Aziz Farouk and Casey Williamson hooked-up in the middle of the 18-yard box to create a 1-on-1 opportunity with EC's Dougherty. Dougherty got a piece of Williamson's shot with his right foot, but he was unable to deflect it completely away from the goal as Ithaca took the 1-0 lead.
EC started to go on the offensive in an attempt to even the score, but Ithaca's Jordan Gentile was up to the task, keeping Elmira off the scoreboard with back-to-back saves. The Purple and Gold nearly scored the equalizer with just over a minute remaining in the first half, as an over-the-top through ball found
Jonathan Miller '16 alone in the box, but Miller's shot sailed high over the crossbar leaving EC trailing 1-0 at the break.
In almost an identical situation as the first half, Ithaca doubled their lead just over four minutes into the second half. Elmira looked to chip away at the deficit and nearly did so in the 59th minute when
Donte Donegal '18 weaved his way through several Bomber defenders and into the left side of the 18-yard box. Donegal took one touch and fired near-post, but Gentile made the kick-save to turn away the shot.
Chris Aristizabal'16 followed up the rebound with a shot of his own, but it went wide, ending EC's scoring threat.
Donegal would redeem himself just a few minutes later as he would make it a 2-1 game in the 65th minute.
Ryan Bertsch '16 found Donegal running down the right side of the field and into the 18-yard box. This time, instead of looking near-post, Donegal fired a shot towards the far post, easily beating Gentile for his fourth goal of the season.
The Soaring Eagles, with time winding down, pressed to score the equalizer, but Ithaca ended Elmira's comeback bid with their third goal of the afternoon with just over 10 minutes to play as EC would go on to lose, 3-1.
Elmira has a full week before they return to competition as they travel to take on Stevens Institute of Technology on Saturday, October 11th at 1:00 p.m.
