The Ithaca College men’s soccer team won big on its Senior Day, defeating the No. 12 nationally ranked Vassar College Brewers on Oct. 26 with a final score of 4-2.
Throughout the game, senior midfielder Landon Hellwig, sophomore midfielder Cameron Wooten and junior goalkeeper Bryson Shaull played an instrumental role in the Bombers’ success.
In the first few minutes of the game, the team struggled defensively. Vassar took advantage of fast breaks when in possession and put persistent offensive pressure on their opponents. In the first eight minutes of the half, Brewers’ senior forward Duncan Keker faced Shaull one-on-one and shot the ball into the center of the Bomber’s net, resulting in a 1-0 lead for the visiting team.
the Bombers had difficulty recovering on defense when Vassar was on an offensive fast break. Amid the Bombers’ fight to prevent goals for their opponent, players like Wooten and Hellwig frequently regained possession for their team. Both players blocked and intercepted vital passes from the Brewers and sent the ball flying into their opponent’s defensive territory.
On offense, the team had multiple opportunities to score. Wooten took most of the team’s throw-ins, propelling the ball deep into the goalkeeper’s territory. Junior forward Jared Krasnove capitalized on a deep throw-in from Wooten to score the team’s first goal of the game. Once the ball was in bounds, senior midfielder Ikey Borden headed the ball, which bounced in Krasnove’s direction. With a simple kick, the ball passed Vassar’s sophomore goalkeeper Jacob Raphan, leading to a double assist for Wooten and Borden.
About five minutes later, Borden was pressured along the Brewers’ goal line but was able to connect a pass upwards toward senior midfielder Connor Tierney, which Tierney successfully shot into the Vassar’s goal.
While the Bomber’s attempted to limit their opponents scoring after their second goal, it didn’t last for long as Vassar’s lead scorer, first-year midfielder Arden Tobolski received a pass from his teammate sophomore midfielder Mauricio Mejia and fired the ball to the far corner of the Bombers’ goal to tie the game at 2-2.
The South Hill Squad’s defensive line made adjustments to their formation and supported Shaull to prevent goals for the remainder of the game.
“We have so many interchangeable pieces to this back line,” Shaull said. “We all get along so well. Our chemistry is so good and then you add [sophomore defender] Nick Dignazio and Cam Wooten who put in heck of performances. … So much credit goes to [the defense] because they have to listen to me shout at them for 90 minutes and it has to get annoying and they did such a good job at it.”
The Bombers came back from the half with a second wind, scoring the two game-winning goals within the first five minutes of the second half. At the 48-minute mark, Hellwig gave a long pass from centerfield to Vassar’s goal line, where Krasnove sent the ball toward the Brewers’ goal and Hellwig drilled it into the net.
Two minutes later, junior forward Andrew Kusek, dribbled the ball down the sideline, made a pass to Borden, and Borden fired the ball past Raphan for another goal. Although the team struggled to take advantage of throw-ins for the remainder of the game, the Bombers played heavy defense to keep their 4-2 lead over the Brewers.
“We had to stay locked in the whole game, hustling and putting everything into it because we don’t get to play many cool games like that,” Hellwig said. “It means so much because really I just want to make the playoffs, keep playing with my friends, keep going throughout the whole season and not be done early. … [The team] knows it’s the seniors’ last time playing soccer and they still care so much to win. It makes me so happy.”
The Bombers improved to 7-6-2 and will play next at 3 p.m. Oct. 30 on Carp Wood Field for their final home game of the season against the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers.
