NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, N.Y. – The Niagara University men’s soccer team (2-10-1, 2-3-0 MAAC) lost 4-1 to Fairfield University (6-5-2, 5-2-0 MAAC) Sunday at Alumni Stadium on the Fairfield campus, dropping the Purple Eagles under .500 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play.
Outplayed in the first half, according to Niagara head coach Dermot McGrane, Fairfield exploded to a 3-0 lead before halftime.
"We didn’t come out ready to play today," McGrane said. "Against a team like Fairfield, that’s going to cost you."
In the 19th minute, Fairfield midfielder Ed Meyer took a pass from teammate Mike Calabrese inside the Purple Eagles’ penalty box and beat Niagara junior goalkeeper Dan O’Shea (East Syracuse, N.Y.) to the right corner of the net.
Just four minutes later, a Calabrese shot to the left side of the Niagara net gave the Stags a 2-0 lead. Meyer picked up his third assist of the season on the Calabrese goal.
Fairfield leading scorer, forward Mike Troy, beat O’Shea in the 38th minute for his seventh goal of the season and third Stags’ goal of the first half.
Even though outplayed and outshot in the first half, Fairfield outshot Niagara 11-2 in the first half, Niagara had an early scoring opportunity on the Stags' net. Graduate student midfielder Ewan Henderson (Lincoln, England) had a one-on-one opportunity with Fairfield goalkeeper Andrew Frankel, but missed the goal on the scoring chance. In the contest, Niagara missed four one-on-one opportunities on the Stags’ net.
Stags’ midfielder Alex Cunliffe scored in the 60th minute, as he took a pass from Troy and beat O’Shea, to give Fairfield a 4-0 lead.
With a four goal deficit, a shot by Niagara sophomore defender Mark Spooner (Derby, England) in the 86th minute beat Fairfield goalkeeper Steven Burns to put the Purple Eagles on the board. Spooner took a cross from freshman forward Matt Stedman (Lockport, N.Y.) and was open in front of the Fairfield goal.
Fairfield outshot Niagara 22-8 in the game.
Stags’ goalkeeper Frankel made one save in the contest to pick up the win. Sophomore goalkeeper Burns, who also saw action for the Stags, allowed the lone goal for Fairfield and did not registering a save. O’Shea made eight saves for the Purple Eagles in the loss.
In a lopsided series between the two schools, Fairfield won its 14th consecutive game over Niagara, leading the lifetime series with a commanding 14-0 record.
The Purple Eagles return to Niagara Field Friday for their final two home games of the 2003 season. Niagara faces Saint Peter’s Friday at 3 p.m. and play Manhattan Sunday at 1 p.m. Admission to both games is free.
