BURLINGTON, Vt. – Niagara senior goalkeeper Joel Gerberich turned in six saves as the Purple Eagles men's soccer team faced a tough test against the Vermont Catamounts on Sunday afternoon, but the offense could not find the back of the net in a 2-0 loss.
 
Game Summary

• Final Score: Vermont 2, Niagara 0
• Niagara Goals: n/a
• Niagara Assists: n/a
• In Goal: Joel Gerberich (0-2) - 2 GA, 6 SV
• Records: Niagara – 0-4-0; Vermont – 2-2-0
• Location: Virtue Field – Burlington, Vt.
• Attendance: 256

 
Game Recap

• Vermont came out shooting early with two shots on goal in the opening eight minutes that had to be turned away by Niagara goalkeeper Joel Gerberich.
• The Catamounts took a 1-0 lead just before the 14-minute mark as an errant cross deflected in to the goal off of a Niagara defender.
• In the closing seconds before halftime, Niagara knocked on the doorstep and nearly broke through to tie the game. Borna Juracic had a header shot blocked by the Vermont defense, and Zulfikar Karimi corralled the loose ball for a shot that was turned away by Vermont's Alex Popovich.
• Juracic came up with another chance in the 56th minute that was shut down by Popovich, after which Vermont took control of the possession.
• Vermont came up with five straight shots over the next 15 minutes, two of which were stopped by Gerberich before Geo Alves doubled the Catamounts' lead in the 72nd minute.
• Niagara was held in check the rest of the way by Vermont's defense in a 2-0 loss.

 
Coach's Corner

• Head coach Bill Boyle: "Today was a much better effort as a team and in our defensive shape. We learned how we must work together on the field and grew as a team. We had a couple of unfortunate lapses, which we have to get better at staying tuned in. If we get this type of effort every game, we will win more games than we lose."

 
Inside the Numbers

• Joel Gerberich's six saves were tied for the second-most in a game in his Niagara career. The senior goalkeeper made nine saves in a 2-0 loss to Saint Francis on Sept. 13, 2015.
• Borna Juracic and Zulfikar Karimi both finished the day with two shots and one shot on goal for Niagara.
• On the day, Vermont held a 22-6 edge in shots and a 9-4 advantage in shots on goal.

 
Up Next

• Niagara heads to Oneonta, New York next weekend to take part in the Mayor's Cup hosted by Hartwick College. The Purple Eagles will take on Robert Morris at 4 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 8 and Hartwick at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 10.

 
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