Visiting Fairfield University scored two goals in the game's
second half, highlighted by sophomore Jordan Ayris' game-winner in the 82nd
minute, as the Stags defeated Canisius College 3-2 in MAAC men's soccer action
Sunday afternoon at the Demske Sports Complex. The win moves Fairfield to 7-8-1
overall and 3-4-0 in league action, while the Golden Griffins slipped to 8-7-2
overall and 1-6-0 in conference games.
The Griffs got on the board with 6:31 left in the first half
as senior Gavin Falconer got the ball
25 yards out off a pass from teammate Will Hudson and fired a shot. Falconer's
shot was deflected off a Fairfield defender and went past Fairfield goalkeeper
Michael O'Keeffe to give Canisius the 1-0 lead.
Fairfield tied the game in the contest's 66th
minute, as a cross from just left of the goal by Reco McLaren got through a
Canisius defender and found Nuno Rodrigues, who scored from 10 yards out for
his first marker of the season. The Stags had a chance to take the lead on a
penalty kick with just under 19 minutes remaining after the Blue and Gold was
whistled for a foul inside the box. Canisius senior goalkeeper Kareem Gray kept the game knotted at
1-1 at that point as he made a diving safe to his right on the penalty kick
taken by Ayris.
The Griffs had their best chance to re-take the lead in
regulation when freshman Alex De Carolis
found teammate Regan Steele from 10 yards
out. Steele sent his shot at the upper-right corner but O'Keeffe was up to the
challenge and made a full-out leaping save, knocking the ball wide of the net
to result in a corner kick for the Griffs.
Fairfield took the lead for good with 8:38 left to play when
Ayris fired a shot into the bottom right corner of the goal from 12 yards out
to put the Stags up 2-1. The Griffs had a chance to knot the game back up in
the 85th minute when De Carolis fired a shot at O'Keefe, but the
senior from New Zealand was able to make the save to preserve the Stags' lead.
"This game was very similar to all of our other MAAC games,
which have also been one-goal games," Canisius head coach Dermot McGrane said. "I give the Fairfield goalkeeper a lot of
credit, he's very good, but I definitely think there were spells today where we
controlled play. We just have not been able to put the ball in the back of the
net when we have had our chances."
Canisius ended the contest with a 19-15 advantage in shots
and an 8-3 margin in corner kicks. O'Keefe earned the win after he made nine
saves, while Gray made six stops in the loss for the Blue and Gold.
Canisius will close out the 2012 regular season next weekend
with a pair of MAAC road games. The Griffs will start their final road swing of
the year at Saint Peter's on Friday, Nov. 2. Game time in Jersey City, N.J., is
set for 2 p.m.
Game Notes: This
was the 25th all-time meeting between Canisius and Fairfield, with
the Stags holding a 19-4-2 advantage... Fairfield has downed Canisius by scores
of 2-1 in each of the last two seasons... Falconer's first half goal makes him
the seventh player in school history to score 10 goals in a season... Hudson's
assist was his third of the season, which ties him with teammate Denver Spearman for third on this year's
roster... Before the game, Canisius honored its six seniors, who played the
final home contest of their careers.
