College of Charleston
Hofstra
Men's Soccer Handed Clean Sheet in Season Finale
11/2/2014 3:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – Playing on a cold, dreary night under ominous Long Island skies, the College of Charleston men's soccer team closed out their 2014 season on Saturday night with a 1-0 loss to the playoff bound Pride at Hofstra Soccer Stadium.
The Cougars 2-11-3 (0-6-2 CAA) put forth another valiant display in the defensive third, withstanding an 18-7 shot differential, but were eventually undone by a quality first half strike from the Pride's senior creative midfielder Maid Memic – whose 39th minute volley proved the difference maker.
On a rain-soaked pitch, the Cougars had nine players go the full 90 minutes, including senior defender Daan Brinkmann, who put in another great shift in his final game wearing the Charleston badge. For his career, the former Ajax youth academy product averaged over 89 minutes per game in 66 outings for The College. Fellow senior Tanner Clay saw 69 minutes of action and also looked sharp in his swan song.
With temperatures plummeting and sheets of rain reflecting off the stadium lighting, it was the Cougars who threatened first when sophomore Xavier Rajpaul fizzed a seventh minute effort just wide of goal. After Memic put a shot from distance well over the bar, the Cougars were back on the offensive as Nico Rittmeyer latched on to a well-weighted pass from Rajpaul and forced the Hofstra keeper in to action with an eleventh minute daisy cutter.
From there, play ebbed and flowed, with both teams struggling to maintain possession in the difficult conditions.
The defining moment came in the 39th minute when Memic lashed at a deflected pass from teammate Mani Walcott on the edge of the six, managing to slot his hard-hit half-volley past keeper Alex Young for the eventual game winner. It was the Bosnian's tenth goal of the season.
After the second half restart, the Cougars enjoyed a sustained spell on the attack, twice testing the Hofstra keeper on efforts from Adnan Noel and freshman midfielder T.K. Abderahman. Weather conditions continued to worsen, however, and as play grew increasingly stagnant in the center of the park, the Cougars were forced to push numbers forward in search of an equalizer.
Sophomore center back Trent Rieflin saw a tame effort fly wide in the 74th-minute, before two late corners from Abderahman proved fruitless as well. A last gasp attempt from Rittmeyer also rolled wide and time soon expired, bringing the 2014 season to a close for head coach Ralph Lundy and company.
