Box Score
RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Despite playing the top team in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), Manhattan was not deterred and earned a 0-0 draw at home against Monmouth on Wednesday night. With the tie the Jaspers (3-9-2, 3-2-2 MAAC) picked up a point and moved into a tie for fourth in the conference standings.
The Jaspers had an opportunity to take a lead in the 9th minute when Dominic Chavez blasted a shot from distance that goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky was able to punch over the crossbar for a save. Daniel Laguna Kennedy had another chance
In the 12th, but again Klenofsky deflected it before it trickled out of bounds. Monmouth (7-5-4, 6-0-2 MAAC) finally put together a threat when Derek Luke had a free kick from just outside the penalty area. With the left foot, he curled around the Manhattan wall but right into the waiting arms of Alex Coates McDowall.
From there, both defenses settled in. Each side made it increasingly difficult for their opponent to get on the board, not allowing many shots to reach the goal. It was the Jaspers backline of Andrew Melitsanopoulos, Andrew Santos, Jake Scavetta and Sean Towey played valiantly even jumping in front of a couple hard strikes to keep Monmouth off the board. Meanwhile, the Hawks defense did not allow any ball to be played behind them or let Laguna Kennedy use his speed to beat them.
Things would get a little dicey for both teams late in the half as Chavez had another ball sail just barely over the crossbar in the 40th minute for Manhattan. In the 44th, Coates McDowall made what was arguably the key play of the match. A loose ball in the box found its way to the foot of Francois Navarro who had a one-on-one chance with the keeper. The Jaspers rookie made the save but the ball ricocheted off to his right where Jacob Rubenstein sent it back towards net. Again, Coates McDowall was up to the task and his defense played it away to send the game into the half scoreless.
Coming out of the break, both teams searched for that first score of the match. Tomas Penfold sent a shot towards net that was easily saved by Coates McDowall, one of only two he had to make in the half. The Jaspers then had potentially the best scoring chance of the night in the 59th minute. Tommy Amos blasted a shot from outside the penalty box that was initially stopped by Klenofsky. It would trickle back towards the top of the box where Laguna Kennedy had an open net chance. Unfortunately for him, a Monmouth player was standing on the goal line to deny a score.
After controlling a good portion of the match, the final fifteen minutes seemed to belong to the Hawks. They would consistently earn free kicks and set pieces that set up multiple scoring chances. However, the Jasper defense stood strong and did not allow a goal to sneak in. Monmouth had two corner kicks in the final five minutes, but Manhattan denied an actual shot from being played and keeping the match scoreless after 90 minutes.
In both overtime sessions, neither team had a real scoring opportunity. However, Monmouth would make things interesting with multiple headers. Rubenstein had one that went wide before Dave Nigro missed high on another attempt. That pressure continued into the second overtime, but did not result in a score thanks again to the Jasper defense.
In only the sixth meeting all-time between the two squads, it was the first ever draw. The Hawks lead the series 4-1-1 as Manhattan snapped a four match losing streak to Monmouth. The Jaspers were outshot 21-9 in the match but both teams had five shots on goal. Coates McDowall earned his third shutout of the year, making five saves, while Klenofsky also stopped five shots in the match.
The Jaspers are currently in a tie for fourth place with Fairfield, who sits at 3-3-2 in the MAAC and a total of 11 points. Due to a better conference win percentage, and Manhattan's 5-2 win over the Stags, they would own the tie-breaker if the regular season ended today. The team is back in action on Sat., Nov. 2 when they host Marist at 1 p.m. at Gaelic Park.
