On Wednesday, the Rams headed to Sacred Heart University to take on the Pioneers. Fordham Men’s Soccer came into the match looking to build off a hard-fought draw on the road against 17th-ranked Hofstra University.
The first half began as a back-and-forth affair, with both teams fighting for a foothold. However, the Pioneers struck first in the 41st minute when freshman Eli Stein found the back of the net to put Sacred Heart on top 1-0. The Rams wasted no time getting back into this one when graduate goalkeeper Andrew Hammersley gave the ball away in a misplayed clearance capitalized on by junior Noe Messer, finding the equalizer from 30 yards out. Returning for the second half, Fordham looked poised to see the winner as they dominated the possession post-halftime. In the 77th minute, senior Jed Dixon would win back the ball for the Rams, who pushed the ball forward to freshman Daniel Lang, who passed it to junior Ede Gramberg; Gramberg left on the right-hand side for junior Daniel D’Ippolito who zipped the ball across goal, finding Lang at the back post for mesmerizing late-winner. The late goal capped off a strong showing from head coach Carlo Acquista’s men. The Rams outshot the Pioneers 17-10, allowing no attempts on goal in the second half while earning four more corner kicks. Fordham took this momentum in their home opener against Colgate University.
On Sunday, the Rams were welcomed back to Joe Moglia stadium for another soccer season in the Bronx. It was a thriller for the home crowd, with the Rams narrowly defeating the Raiders 3-2. Colgate got on the board first after the initial penalty save by graduate keeper Carter Abbott rebounded back at freshman Alex St. John, who gave Colgate a 1-0 lead. 20 minutes later, Daniel D’Ippolito drew the Rams level with a beautiful strike from 18 yards out that the junior nestled inside the right post. After both teams went into halftime level, the Rams came out of the gates firing. Junior Andre Insalaco gave Fordham the lead when he took advantage of a Colgate miscue, chipping it over the defense from 20 yards out. Fordham would increase their lead in the later stages of play when junior Jack Sias found graduate student Lukas Hackaa with a cross, putting Fordham up by two goals with very few minutes remaining. It wasn’t a routine ending for the Rams, as sophomore midfielder Jack Beerling got on the end of his own deflected shot, bringing the Raiders within one with five minutes left to go. Despite their last-minute efforts, Colgate fell to the Rams in what is now Fordham’s ninth straight game unbeaten at home. With three separate goal scorers beginning their accounts for the new campaign, Fordham’s variety upfront will serve as a unique weapon as conference play approaches. Sitting unbeaten on the year so far (2-0-1), the Rams will host Santa Clara University, who will make the coast-to-coast trip out east to play at Moglia Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. this Thursday, Sept. 5.
