Bulldogs defeat Bears for the first time in school history

Bulldogs defeat Bears for the first time in school history

SMITHFIELD, R.I. For the first time in school history the Bryant University men's soccer team defeated Brown University. The Bulldogs defeated the Bears 2-1 on Sunday afternoon on the Bulldog Soccer Field.

Game Information

Bryant 2, Brown 1

Records: Bryant 3-3-0, Brown 1-3-1

Location: Bulldog Soccer Field | Smithfield, R.I.

Coach Purcell's Comments

"Today was a long overdue win over Brown. We scored two nice goals, we had a bunch of guys get injured and things kind of fell apart, but I thought we were relentless and rootless defensively. It wasn't pretty, but we're very happy to get back to .500 and move on to conference play."

Key Moment

After a corner kick pass off from senior Zachary Valckenaere (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.), classmate Alex DaCosta (Bristol, R.I.) crossed it to the front of the goal where captain George Gill (Cork, Munster, Ireland) headed it in to give the Bulldogs the initial advantage.

Scoring Summary

  • 18th minute – Bryant 1, Brown 0 – Gill headed one to the back of the net after a cross from DaCosta, putting the Bulldogs on the board for the first goal of the game.
  • 25th minute – Bryant 2, Brown 0 – DaCosta fired one past the Brown goalkeeper, doubling Bryant's lead just seven minutes after the first goal.
  • 68th minute – Brown 1, Bryant 2 – Senior Olivier Larente (LaSalle, Montreal) saved a shot from Matthew Chow. The ball then rebounded out, while Brady Van Epps took the advantage and knocked it back in past Larente.

Stats/Notes

  • After their second win in a row, the Bulldog's sit 3-3 on the year heading into conference play at an even .500.
  • DaCosta registered three points on the game, bringing him to 11 on the season.
  • Bryant outshot Brown 8-3 in the first half, but the Bears fired back outshooting the Bulldogs 12-4 in the second half and 15-12 overall.
  • DaCosta put two shots on frame, while classmates Gill and Charles DeSantis (Saint-Mathias-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec) also put a shot on goal each.
  • Sophomore Ben Williams (Unionville, Ontario) totaled four shots on the day and senior Trevor Lyne (Feeding Hills, Mass.) added two.
  • Sophomore Chris Ciullo (Mansfield, Mass.) recorded the first shot of his career in his eighth all-time appearance.
  • Larente tied for a season-high five saves, bringing him to 20 on the season.

Up Next: Sacred Heart

Bryant takes a week off before heading into conference play when it hosts Sacred Heart Sunday September 29 at 1 p.m.