The Cornell men’s soccer team successfully gained two wins this past weekend at Berman Field. The Red went into last Friday’s game with a 1-2-1 record; however, after defeating Saint Joseph’s, 3-1, on Friday and Canisius College, 1-0, on Sunday, its record improved to 3-2-1.On Friday night, the men’s soccer team became the aggressor as they dominated a winless Saint Joseph’s (0-5) squad. In the first two minutes of the match, junior midfielder Jimmy Lannon took advantage of the defending goalie being out of position by shooting on an open net. He succeeded and the Red earned its first goal. The rest of the first half consisted of the Red continually remaining aggressive. However, neither team earned more goals. “Even though we put a very high amount of pressure on them, we did not put some goals away that we should have,” said sophomore forward Tyler Regan. The Red took three unsuccessful shots to begin the second half until junior forward Will Ogden found junior forward Chase Aaronson for a goal in the 58th minute. The game continued and at the 82nd minute, sophomore defender Ben Kenyon was able to score another goal for the Red. With five minutes remaining, Saint Joseph’s was able to gain one goal; however, it was too late for the Hawks to gain any momentum and the Red proved victorious. “The win against Saint Joseph’s was a huge morale booster,” said junior midfielder Jimmy Lannon. Although mentally fresh off of a win, the Red was challenged physically in its game on Sunday. The Red’s scheduled Thursday game was pushed up to Friday, due to weather conditions. This change resulted in potentially crucial lost rest time before its game on Sunday. However, this did not affect the players’ positive attitudes. “Although we had lost 24 hours of rest, coach Zawislan makes sure that we are in shape by working extra hard in the preseason so that we can outlast other teams,” said sophomore forward Tyler Regan. In addition, Zawislan realized this potential danger and made an effort to deter it. “As a coach I had to work hard to manage a lineup well. Our opponent had a full week to rest their legs while we only had less than 48 hours. However, I am proud that the guys had the right mind set,” Zawislan said.At the beginning of the game against Canisius (0-4), the Red worked in sync in order to provide opportunities for goals. At the 32nd minute, Aaronson passed to Regan, resulting in the Red’s one and only goal for the entire game. As the game continued, the Red proved that it has a lot of depth to its team by being able to have numerous substitutions without changing its level of play. “I was proud that we had lots of substitutions and we were still able to hang on to our 1-0 lead,” said sophomore defender Ben Kenyon.Towards the end of the second half, the Red’s defense and offense fought to advance its lead. However, no more goals came to either team, resulting in a 1-0 win for Cornell. “We could have put away the game earlier by giving ourselves a two or three point cushion; however, it was still a solid win,” Lannon said.Not only did the men’s soccer team fight together as a team this past weekend, but it also looked like a team on the field. “We all got new haircuts. You know, to look better on the field. They’re also more aerodynamic,” Aaronson said. These haircuts, combined with the talent of each player on the team, could potentially help to continue the Red’s winning streak this upcoming Wednesday against Syracuse at 7pm at Berman Field.
Original Author: Taylor Nieman