BUFFALO, N.Y. -- With the Devils holding a 3-0 lead with just over 15 minutes to play, Mount Aloysius came roaring back and scored four times to claim a 4-3, season-opening victory over the Fredonia State men's soccer team on Friday. The Mountie's Juan Camacho scored all four, with the first two coming via penalty kicks.
Early on, everything was going Fredonia State's way. In the 21st minute,
Kye Castelluccio took a pass from
Sam Evans to score what would be the only goal of the first half.
Six minutes into the second half,
Brian Taylor made it a 2-0 game on a helper from
Chance LaCroix. Just four-and-a-half minutes later, Evans scored his first goal as a Blue Devil in the 56th minute, pushing the lead to 3-0.
Then the momentum shifted.
At the 76:08 mark, Camacho was awarded a penalty kick, putting Mount Aloysius on the board. Just 40 seconds later, Camacho connected on his second penalty kick, cutting the lead to 3-2.
Camacho would tie the game in the 83rd minute, then score the game winner in the 84th minute -- just 51 seconds apart -- to produce the win.
"Unfortunate ending when it seemed we were on cruise control," said head coach
P.J. Gondek. "A 3-0 lead in soccer is usually pretty safe. The two penalty kicks turned the table and we just could not stop the momentum. It puts a sour taste in our mouths when we seemingly played so well against a good team. We absolutely must grow from this. On to tomorrow."
Thomas McDonald had six saves in 90 minutes of play for the Devils. Mount Aloysius goaltender Sam Denchfield was credited with two saves.
The Devils take on Elmira College at 4 p.m. on Saturday to wrap up the Buffalo State Invitational.