On Oct. 3 the men’s soccer team traveled to Hoboken, New Jersey, for a matchup against nationally ranked Stevens Institute of Technology. The Bombers suffered their first conference loss in a 1–0 defeat to the Ducks.

The contest marked the first time the two squads had faced each other since the 2014 Empire 8 Championship. The Bombers were also shutout in that matchup, losing by a score of 3–0.    

Stevens opened the scoring 12 minutes into the game on a high shot by Harrison Kane. That goal would be all the Ducks would need, as the Bombers were not able to get much done on the offensive side of the ball. The Bombers only registered four shots in the game. However, three of those shots were on net.

The Bombers’ best chance came a minute after Stevens’s only goal. Junior forward Sean Forward and junior midfielder Brandon Thompson had back-to-back shots on Stevens’s goalie Mike Renna. But Renna was able save both quick chances, keeping intact what would be an eventual shutout.   

Junior goalkeeper Zach Jacobsen kept the Bombers within striking distance throughout the match, knocking away 10 of the 11 shots he faced from the aggressive Stevens offense. That included Stevens’ five corner kicks in the defensive-minded game played by both teams.

Things were very rough on the pitch in this highly anticipated rematch. The Bombers and the Ducks combined for 25 fouls in the matchup. Six yellow cards — three for each side — were also issued by the referees.

The Bombers return home at 4:30 p.m. Oct. 6 for their next match against Hamilton College, one of their last non-conference games in the 2015 campaign.