Bulldogs fall victim to pair of quick second-half goals in Saturday’s 2-0 loss at FDU

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's soccer team faced 18 shots and 11 on goal, as two were powerful strikes from over 20 yards out that both found the back of the net in a 40-second span, giving Fairleigh Dickinson a 2-0 victory Saturday in Teaneck, N.J.

The Bulldogs (1-9-1, 0-1-1) are now 2-4-2 against the Knights (3-8-1, 1-1-1), who move into fourth place in the Northeast Conference, while Bryant is tied for fifth with Robert Morris.

The hosts hammered the Bulldogs with nine first-half shots, five being on target. But freshman keeper Olivier Larente (Garches, France) was up for the task in his second-straight start, making five saves over the first 12 minutes.

Bryant also came out aggressive with the game's first shot just 12 seconds in, as it had five shots in the opening half. But the sides cooled down with only three combined shots over the final 20 minutes to send the game into halftime scoreless.

The flurry of shots persisted in the second half with nine more coming off FDU feet. The endless chances finally paid dividends in the 53rd minute, as Daniel Lasarte sent a short pass to David Bokumabi on the left side. The sophomore turned and sent a strong curled shot from 25 yards out to the upper right corner of the net that got past a diving Larente.

After the restart, the Knights won back possession quickly and threw the ball in on the left wing. A pass from midfield was sent to the right side where Cristian Nunez was waiting. He took a few dribbles to the middle and struck a left-footed rocket from nearly the same distance to the near post that found the back of the net. The goals were separated by just 46 seconds.

The Bulldogs struggled to find quality looks in the second half, but had two great chances in the final six minutes. Following a Knight foul from the right side just outside the box, senior Curtis Orth (Ancaster, Ont.) shot to the far post on the free kick, but Julian Murillo Toro punched the ball out of play for a Bryant corner.

Junior David Abunaw (West Hartford, Conn.) lined up for the set piece and sent a low ball through the box to find Orth on the right side. He contorted his body and shot to the far post again, but Toro made a diving stop to preserve the lead. It was the final push for the Bulldogs, as they could not find a score for the seventh time this season.

Orth paced the visitors with four shots and three on net. Abunaw and classmate Jason Norat (Wilmington, Del) each added a shot on goal in the loss. With the exception of the game-winning 46-second span, Larente played very well with nine stops.

Enver Caymaz was all over the field, attempting a contest high six shots with four on net. Lasarte had three shots on frame to go along with his assist, Bokumabi had two shots with the one being his first goal of the year, and Jamie Leddy and Quentie Kyeremateng had three shots each. Toro made five saves in the win to improve to 2-2 as a starter.