NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY – Niagara (4-10-3, 4-4-2 MAAC) fell on the road to No. 4 Manhattan (7-7-3, 6-3-1 MAAC) by the final score of 2-0 in the first round of the MAAC Men's Soccer Championship.
 
How it Happened
The Purple Eagles would come out of the gates strong, taking four shots, including two on goal in the first 10-minutes of action. Dominic Cintra would nearly give Niagara the early lead with his shot in the 3rd minute, but Danny DiMarco, the Manhattan goalie, made the stop.
 
In the 7th minute, Felix Kogler would line up over the ball for a free-kick just outside the 18-yard box. The junior would put a shot on goal, but DiMarco would leap to make the save and keep the game scoreless.
 
Manhattan would send two shot attempts over the goal, before a counter attack led to the games first goal in the 37th minute. Nassim Akki and Henry Hamilton would team up to find Sebastiano Musu for the tally, giving the Jaspers a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
 
In the second half, Matheus Spina would sprint past the Jasper back line looking for the equalizer but his shot attempt went off the crossbar in the 50th minute.
 
Later on in the half, Asher Barnes would look to even the scoring sending a shot to the near post, but DiMarco was once again there to make the stop and keep NU off the board.
 
Niagara would miss on a pair of shot attempts before Manhattan found its brace in the 82nd minute when Hamilton found the back of the net after receiving a pass from Gunnar Studenhofft.
 
Gianluca Del Priore would take a pair of chances in the final five minutes of play, however the freshman would have one shot blocked and the other go wide.
 
Niagara Notes
• Niagara drops to 13-18-4 all-time against Manhattan.
• Jamie Barry's one save on the evening was a season-low for the sophomore keeper.
• Manhattan's seven shots were the fewest by a Niagara opponent this season.
• Kogler was whistled for six infractions, a single-game high by a Purple Eagle this season.
• NU finished the season with a 1-7-3 road record.
 
 
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