Late heroics help Bryant earn draw at FDU, stay atop NEC

Late heroics help Bryant earn draw at FDU, stay atop NEC

TEANECK, N.J. – Senior Remi Manna (Pleasantville, N.Y.) evened the contest with a header in the 89th minute and the Bryant University women's soccer team earned a 1-1 draw Sunday afternoon at Fairleigh Dickinson in a clash of the NEC's two unbeaten teams.

Fairleigh Dickinson got on the board with a fourth-minute score and looked to double its lead in the 11th minute, but junior Meghan Dalton (West Hartford, Conn.) denied a penalty kick to keep it a one-goal margin until Manna's late tally.

The draw, which kept Bryant one point ahead of Fairleigh Dickinson in the NEC standings, extended the Bulldogs' unbeaten streak to 10 games.

Game Information
Bryant 1, Fairleigh Dickinson 1
Records: Bryant (7-3-4, 5-0-3); Fairleigh Dickinson (6-5-5, 5-0-2)
Location: University Stadium (Teaneck, N.J.) 

Coach Biggs' Comments
"I'm very proud of our team for all the grit they showed today. Having played on Friday, to still have the fight to tie the game that late after going a goal down so early speaks volumes about their level of character and commitment." 

Scoring Summary

4' – Fairleigh Dickinson 1, Bryant 0 – A free kick from in front of the Bryant bench was sent into the box and headed twice before being deflected twice and finding the foot of FDU's Alexiane Marquis, who put it past Dalton to get the Knights on the board first.
89' – Bryant 1, Fairleigh Dickinson 1 – Redshirt-senior Alison Guilmette (Coventry, R.I.) sent a corner in from the right side and connected perfectly with Manna, who headed it in for the equalizer with 97 seconds to spare.

Stats/Notes

  • Manna's goal, the 13th of her career, brought her within four of Kaitlyn Hinck's Division I career goals record of 17 and within five points of Hinck's D1 program-best 37 from 2008-11.
  • Bryant is unbeaten in its last 10 contests, dating back to Sept. 9. The Bulldogs are 6-0-4 during that stretch.
  • The Bulldogs have allowed one goal or less in 13 of 14 games this year and have held opponents to 0.86 goals per game in 2019. 

Up Next: Sacred Heart
Bryant will return home to host Sacred Heart next Sunday at 1 p.m. for Senior Day at the Bulldog Soccer Field. 

Be sure to follow the team on FacebookTwitter and Instagram for a look behind the scenes with Bryant Women's Soccer.