By Tyler Freire
As we head into the middle part of the schedule with a handful of conference opponents coming up, the Fordham Men’s Soccer team had a decent week. The Rams tied with crosstown rival Manhattan 0-0 before heading down to DeLand, Florida and picking up a tough road victory against Stetson University.
In the “Battle of the Bronx,” Fordham sophomore goalkeeper Rashid Nuhu made four crucial saves throughout the match to hold the Jaspers scoreless. After a first half that saw just two shots on goal from both clubs, the offenses made adjustments going into the second half and Fordham registered nine shots to Manhattan’s seven.
Both teams also had shots go off the crossbar — Manhattan’s Troy Carrington did in the 75th minute, while Fordham junior midfielder Jannik Loebe did so in the 78th minute. For the game, Fordham outshot Manhattan 16-10, and both clubs conceded seven corners. Junior midfielder Eric Ohlendorf had a team-high three shots for Fordham, and Kiels Kirch had a match-high four shots for the Jaspers.
Heading into a tough road game against Stetson, Fordham had very little offensive momentum but appeared strong on the other side of the ball. “On the defensive end, we are solid,” said head coach James McElderry. “Not scoring much early on in the season has put a lot of pressure on the entire team in terms of defending. This has forced us to be strong.”
“The team is improving, and I feel this past week we made great progress,” he said of the team’s recent performance. “Though we were very disappointed not to beat Manhattan, we earned our first clean sheet of the season and again created many scoring chances that we feel will eventually turn into goals. We are creating chances, and that is all I can ask for. I am confident the goals will come.”
Next up on the schedule was Stetson University, when the Rams traveled to DeLand, Florida for their first match in the Sunshine State since 2006. Fordham struck first when Janos Loebe scored his first goal of the season in the 34th minute. Senior defender Andrew Hickey started the play with a cross to the right side of the pitch to Loebe, who found the back of the net inside the right post from 10 yards out.
Shortly after, Stetson would tie the match at one. Finn Busmann’s cross found Daniel O’Brien for a header that bounced past Nuhu into the lower right portion of the goal for a 1-1 score.
The score would remain tied until the 73rd minute as the Rams had the ball near the corner after a foul from Stetson. Sophomore midfielder Janos Loebe took the free kick and found his brother Jannik Loebe for a one touch deflection that found the back of the net for his first goal of the season. That goal marked the second time the Loebe brothers have scored in the same game for Fordham. The previous time came against La Salle last season.
The brother-to-brother connection proved to be the turning point in the match, as Fordham would come away with the 2-1 victory. In net, Nuhu made four saves to help secure the win for the Rams.
“The match in Florida versus Stetson was the best game we have played so far,” said McElderry. “We scored twice on the road, took a lead, but also had to come back after allowing the tying goal. The group competed well for the 90 minutes and fully deserved the win.”
Next up for the Rams is another in-state opponent Columbia comes to Jack Coffey Field on Friday, Sept. 23 at 5 p.m.
“We are hoping to combine our alums and current students to have our biggest crowd of the season,” said McElderry. “Columbia is currently 4-1-0 this season with some impressive wins. We got the better of them last year, but it is always a very tight game and a good preparation for both teams as we both begin our conference schedule the following weeks. Every game we have will be a battle, but I am confident our team has the ability to reach all of our major goals this season.”
With the tie and win this week, the Rams improved to 2-3-2 on the year.
