NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY – A late goal from Ali Alomari helped Niagara (4-8-4, 3-2-3 MAAC) escape Wednesday afternoon's MAAC men's soccer contest with Marist (6-6-3, 2-4-2 MAAC) with a 1-1 draw.
 
 Game Recap
 First Half
• Marist would control most of the first 20-plus minutes of action, leading to the game's opening marker in the 22nd minute by the Red Foxes.
• Following the goal, Rodrigo Almeida would put a cross into the box but failed to connect with a teammate, keeping NU down by one.  
• With less than five minutes to go in the first half Almeida would get past the Marist back line and nearly miss the near side of the goal with the left footed effort.
 
 Second Half
•  The Purple Eagles took seven corners and seven shots in the second half before Ali Alomari found the back of the net in the 86th minute.
• Federico Cugge and Asher Barnes teamed up to find Alomari free in front of the net and then Alomari flicked it past the keeper for the equalizer.
• Niagara would then have two chances to take the lead in the final two minutes but the Marist back line was able to block the attempts from Barnes and Cugge.
• Alomari had a few grade-A chances in the second half but was kept out of the scoring column.  

Head Coach Bill Boyle's Postgame Comments:
"My staff and I are incredibly proud of this group of players this year. They never give up, and they are constantly battling through adversity. We were missing two players, and the guys stepped up as we expected. Even the guys that aren't getting in the game are a huge reason for us getting to this point today. We had to chase the game off a bad call that resulted in the goal, and we kept persisting until it finally came for us. Credit to the Marist keeper as well; he made some massive saves."
 
 Niagara Notes
• Niagara improves to 9-16-2 all-time against the Red Foxes.
• Alomari's goal was his second of the season and first since NU's win over Canisius on Sept. 28.
• The assists for Cugge and Barnes were their first of the season.
• Josh Savoni made two saves on the day and has 35 on the season.
 
 Up Next
 • The Purple and White will head to Riverdale, NY for a 12 p.m. contest against Manhattan.
 
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