Score: #13 SUNY Cortland 3, Elmira College 0
Records: Cortland (4-1-0), Elmira (1-3-1)
Location: Campus Field – Elmira, N.Y.
 
ELMIRA, N.Y. -- Elmira College men's soccer was unable to overcome the relentless attack of 13th-ranked SUNY Cortland, as the Soaring Eagles fell to the Red Dragons by a 3-0 final score at Campus Field. Sophomore netminder Jacob Liese '20 made a career-high 10 saves in his second start of the season.
 
The Red Dragons controlled the pace of today's game with plenty of ball possession and an aggressive high-pressure defense. Those two factors allowed Cortland to produce 20 first-half shots, eight of which found their mark, and finish the contest with a 35-5 lead in shot attempts.
 
Despite the lopsided shot count, Elmira nearly took a one-goal lead in the 21st minute on one of its four first-half opportunities. A headed clear by Luke Kretschmer '21 set up a quick counter attack, starting with a pass from John Broyles '19 to his younger brother, Josh Broyles '21, who sent a lobbed pass over the Cortland back line to a racing Donte Donegal '18. From there, Donegal split a pair of defender and drew Cortland's goalkeeper, Connor Young, off of his line and all the way to the top of the 18-yard box. Donegal centered a pass to rookie Levi Ahl '21, who attempted to curl the ball into the open goal, but a Red Dragon defender was there to block the shot at the goal line and keep EC off of the scoreboard.
 
Elmira's defense held its own through the majority of the opening half, until rookie Jake Kaufman put the visitors out in front in the 23rd minute with a one-touch rocket from 18 yards out. Following an EC turnover at midfield, Miguel Tunas sent a long over-the-top pass to Kaufman, who calmly let the ball bounce once before burying it into the lower right corner. Tunas was credited with an assist on the goal.
 
Cortland entered the halftime break with a 1-0 lead, but quickly doubled its advantage in the first two minutes of the second half. Tunas once again set up the scoring play with a perfect delivery off of a corner kick to Todd Perlman, who leaped over several EC defenders and snapped a header into the back of the net.
 
The Red Dragons scored their third and final goal of the contest in the 68th minute, as Jake Keller followed up a miss on a free kick by Dan Figarella. Keller collected Figarella's rebound, which caromed off of the crossbar, and finished the poacher's goal from just a few yards out to solidfy Cortland's 3-0 win.
 
In His Own Words…
Head Coach Kevin Brenner shares his thoughts on today's contest…
"I was very pleased with how hard the players worked today against a very good national top-15 team. I felt despite them having the lion's share of possession and chances on-goal, their goals were a direct result of us making simple mistakes. We will right the ship and get refocused for another important match on Wednesday, as we continue to improve ourselves against good competition."
 
News and Notes

• Liese's 10 saves were a team high and a career-best for the sophomore keeper.
• Josh Broyles made his first collegiate start this evening, while big brother John Broyles got his first start of the 2017 season.  
• The 35 shots allowed were a season high for Elmira.
• The last time EC allowed 35 shots or more dates back to the 2010 season, when St. Lawrence launched 38.

 
Up Next
Elmira returns to action this Wednesday, September 13, when the Soaring Eagles travel to face Liberty League foe RIT. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. in Rochester, New York.