October 25, 2008

RAMS REMAIN A THREAT IN CAA TOURNAMENT RACE WITH 1-1 AT TOWSON
Black and Gold dominate pace of play, unleashing 30 shots in the game
Box Score

TOWSON, Md. – With just three games remaining in its 2008 campaign, the Virginia Commonwealth University men’s soccer team knows that it is in for a battle and the Rams continue to show they will be a factor in the race for the 2008 Colonial Athletic Association Tournament.

The Black and Gold battled the Tigers of Towson University to a 1-1 tie, the second straight tie for VCU, on Saturday afternoon.

With the tie, the Rams move to 7-6-2 on the year and 3-3-2 in conference play, while Towson holds a 7-4-3 overall record and 3-2-3 in CAA action.

The defenses were the story in the first half of the game as neither team had many scoring opportunities with a combined shot total of 10, with only one of them being on target.

Head Coach Tim O’Sullivan must have made a great halftime speech because VCU dominated the second half of play, unleashing six shots in the first 10 minutes of the second half, but the score remained tied at 0-0.

Towson would finally break through in the 63rd minute as Liam Maloney was able to find the back of the net, thanks to assists from Phil Greatwich and Nino Mangione as the Tigers grabbed the 1-0 advantage.

Just over a minute later, junior Otavio De Luca (Sao Paulo, Brazil) answered back as he notched his first goal of the season to even the game at 1-1.

The Rams offensive attack was relentless in the second half with a commanding 17-2 advantage in shots, but the teams headed into the extra time with the score still tied at 1-1.

VCU held a slight 7-4 advantage in shots in the two overtime periods, but the defenses held strong as the two teams finished the contest with the scoreboard reading 1-1.

Junior Joey Lyonnais (Fredericksburg, Va.) was all over the field and tested Towson goalkeeper John Steele all game long with eight shots on the night and four shots on goal.

Overall, VCU dominated the stat sheet by out shooting the Tigers 30-10 and held a 7-1 advantage in corner kicks.

The six-team CAA Tournament field is still wide open ending the final two weeks of regular season play with the top nine teams separated by just six points.