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Riverdale, NY - Junior
Arianna Montefusco's (Levittown, NY / General Douglas MacArthur) header in the 85th minute was denied as Fordham escaped Gaelic Park with a 1-0 win over Manhattan in the annual 'Battle of the Bronx.'
The Rams improve to 1-2 while the Jaspers fall to 0-3.
Fordham was the aggressor for most of the night in posting a decisive 24-12 advantage in shots, but was quelled for the most part by the tremendous play of senior goalkeeper
Camryn Nici (Seaford, NY / St. Anthony's).
Nici made 10 saves on the night, including three highlight-reel stops, to keep the Rams off the board, before the visitors finally broke through in the 80th minute. Kristen Cocozza tapped the ball in off a cross to the far left post to provide what would prove to be the lone goal on the evening.
After falling behind, Manhattan played a tenacious final 10 minutes, blasting five shots, including three that went on goal and one that went painstakingly wide.
In the 90th minute, junior
Gemma Perez (Paramus, NJ / Paramus Catholic) blasted a free kick that went on goal, and on the redirect Montefusco's shot was blocked while setting up one final corner kick. Unfortunately, that would be the last opportunity for Jaspers.
Notes
* Manhattan was outshot by a scant 10-9 margin after halftime.
* The Jaspers have dropped each of their first three matches by just one goal.
* Seventeen of the teams' 30 all-time matches have been decided by one goal or less.
* Head Coach
Brendan Lawler is now 7-3, all-time, in home openers at Manhattan.
* Fordham owned a 10-3 advantage in shots on goal and in corner kicks.
* Nici is averaging 8.0 saves per game.
* Sophomore
Eve Montgomery (Abington, MA / Whitman-Hanson Regional) had a team-high four shots while Montefusco notched three.
* Morgan Busacca and Margaret Roughley assisted on Cocozza's game-winning score.Â
* Kelly LaMorte made three saves, including two in the final six minutes, in earning the win between the pipes.
Top Manhattan Plays
Up Next
* Manhattan is at Binghamton on Sunday, September 1 with opening kick tabbed for 1:00 pm.
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