pictures displayed at the field for Homecoming weekend.
Angelina Dohre/Photo Editor
QUINTIN JAMES
Staff Writer
Fredonia men’s soccer, coming into the weekend, needed to win at least one game to get into the SUNYAC playoffs. They were looking to secure the sixth and final playoff spot, but they had to face New Paltz and Oneonta on the last weekend of the regular season.
The first game on Friday against New Paltz was a game that saw Fredonia’s comeback fall short 2-1. New Paltz played the last 28 minutes a man down, as two yellow cards were handed out against defender Sebastian Gordon-Somers-Archer, which forced him to leave the game.
Coach PJ Gondek explained how New Paltz, who were already eliminated from playoff contention, are still dangerous at the end of the season because they have nothing to play for.
“All week we talked about New Paltz being a dangerous team to play when they have nothing to play for, and they were just that.”
New Paltz scored late in the first half off of a corner kick after they had put pressure on goalie Ty Bentham beforehand. Bentham saved a shot but couldn’t get possession of it, and New Paltz would score off of a rebound to go up 1-0.
New Paltz would add another goal in minute 78 off of a bad defensive sequence from the Blue Devils. New Paltz’s Ryan Martinez split two Fredonia defenders in the midfield then crossed it into the box to Kevin Doorley for the 2-0 advantage.
Senior Ryan Ross would score off of a rebound 88 minutes into the contest, but they couldn’t muster up another goal and ran out of time in a heartbreaking upset loss. This loss set the Blue Devils back and forced them into a win-and-in situation against Oneonta.
“We have to quickly put this behind us because we have a win-and-we’re-in situation tomorrow,” said Gondek.
Fredonia was faced with a tough position to get into the playoffs: they had to beat seventh-ranked Oneonta.
It was senior day in Fredonia as six seniors were honored: Ryan Ross, Dan Griffin, Aaron Hayes, Eric Priester, David Trabold and Parker Healy.
Fredonia would set the tone early as they would get on the board first. Fifteen minutes into the game, sophomore Dylan Moeser put the Blue Devils ahead after multiple saves from the Oneonta goalkeeper. The score would stay that way for the first half, but Oneonta had plenty of chances to equalize.
In the second half, Oneonta showed why they were first in the conference as they struck four minutes into the half to tie the game at 1-1.
A crack in the Fredonia defense three minutes later would lead to an Oneonta breakaway chance that they would convert and go up 2-1.
The loss eliminated Fredonia from playoff contention as they finished in the seventh seed, two points out of a playoff spot. While the season wasn’t a success, Fredonia had a lot of new faces this year and will look to rebound next season with a determined mindset and a chip on their shoulder.
