BUFFALO, N.Y. - In the final game of the Red Foxes' western New York road trip, the Marist men's soccer team played the host Canisius to a 0-0 double overtime tie. In a hard-fought game, Marist (4-3-4) outshot Canisius (3-6-1) 20-13 and pressed in the offensive zone throughout. On defense, grad student Steve Skonieczny (LaGrangeville, N.Y.) made four saves in preserving the scoreless tie.
The constant rain had a considerable effect on the crispness of play and consequently the offenses of both teams.
The game began with a strong Marist push in the offensive end as the Red Foxes had three corner kick opportunities within the first 7:05 of play. Marist kept the pressure on, though it was Canisius who registered the first shot towards net in the 15th minute. In the 20th minute, the team once again had multiple corner kick chances and eventually senior Krystian Witkowski (Rochester, N.Y.) put the first shot on goal for either team, though Canisius' Ryan Arvin corralled the attempt to keep the score at 0-0.
Canisius had a stretch of play from the 25th minute to the 34th where they were able to put a few more sustained possessions together in Marist's defensive end and came out with two shots, one of which rang off the crossbar.
Less than a minute after entering the game as a sub junior Anthony Rozmus (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) made his presence know as he quickly put a shot on goal that Arvin denied.
The second half had an overwhelmingly Marist feel to it as the Red Foxes registered the first six shots over a 17 minute span. Senior Lucas Szabo (Bethesda, Md.) and Witkowski both put attempts on net.
Canisius' lone shot on goal came in the 74th minute as Jon Cary tested Skonieczny.
Regulation closed with three Marist opportunities in the final 6:27 of play. Szabo's shot in the 89th minute was a tough shot that tested Arvin, who stopped it for his fifth save of the game.
In the first overtime period, Canisius was able to get three shots off to Marist's one. Skonieczny came up big as he denied both of Gavin Falconer's shots on target in a span of 26 seconds from 99:32 to 99:58.
Marist controlled the second ten minute period as they got three shots off, including a Stephan Brossard (Port Washington, N.Y.) shot on goal.
After 110 minutes of action, the game went final at 0-0.
For the match, Marist outshot Canisius 20-13, with the Red Foxes holding a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal.
Skonieczny made four save in 110 minutes of action.
Post- game head coach Matt Viggiano remarked that "we were the better team out there today; we dominated the majority of the play. Unfortunately, we just couldn't get on the scoreboard. We played in some adverse conditions and I'm pleased that we got a point. Now we have to take care of business at home with five of our last seven league games."
The Red Foxes will next be in action on Saturday, Oct. 8 when they host Siena in their MAAC home opener. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. under the lights at Tenney Stadium at Leonidoff Field.
