Garden City, N.Y. - In an evenly-matched contest, the No. 5 Adelphi University men's soccer team began its Northeast-10 Conference and NCAA Division II East Region title defense with a 2-1 win against Post University in a non-conference showdown Thursday night at Motamed Field in Garden City.
Though the Panthers (1-0) fell into an early 1-0 hole, Adelphi managed to pull even before the half.
In the 31st minute, senior defender
Alessandro Corti settled a free ball at the top of the 18-yard box and fired a left-footed shot past Eagles' (0-1) sophomore goalkeeper David Mollenthiel for the equalizer.
Though both teams attempted eight shots apiece in the latter 45 minutes of play, it was Adelphi that came through with the shot that counted the most.
Nearly seven minutes into the second half, sophomore midfielder
Filippo Peri finished a
Stephen Megaloudis cross into the left-side netting to put the Panthers in front for good.
In the first half, Post had a golden opportunity to extend its one-goal lead, but AU senior goalkeeper
Matt Apicella came up big, denying Alvaro Sanchez in a 1-on-1 situation in the 19th minute.
Apicella and Mollenthial both finished with three saves on the night. Adelphi held a 14-11 advantage in shots and a 5-4 edge in corner kicks in the match.
The Panthers are back in action Tuesday night (Sept. 10), when they host Molloy College in a non-conference tilt at Motamed Field at 7:30 p.m.
