Men's Soccer | 11/10/2005 3:28:00 PM
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EAST ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Nov. 10, 2005) -- Brockport scored once in each half Thursday and the Golden Eagles went on to take a 2-0 men's soccer victory over Nazareth in the opening game of the NCAA Division III Tournament at East Rochester High School.The Golden Flyers, making their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament for men's soccer, completed their improbable journey with an overall record of 6-10-5. Brockport, at 15-3-1 overall, advances to Saturday's second round at Plattsburgh (19-1).
"I thought they were magnificent," said Nazareth Coach Danny Gilbertson. "It would be easy for a team like that to get complacent at a time like this, but they did a very professional job."
In reaching the NCAAs by eliminating Ithaca and RIT each through penalty kicks, Nazareth displayed defensive resilience. The Golden Flyers showed it again Thursday in the first half with a stiff wind in their face against Brockport.
Brockport finally broke through with 10:28 to play in the first half as a shot by Mike Abgarian beat Nazareth goalie Alex Kilroy (pictured) into the upper left corner of the goal. Aaron Acello assisted as he sent a long pass to Abgarian up the right wing.
With the wind at its back in the second half, Nazareth was still unable to generated many scoring chances as Brockport outshot the Golden Flyers 14-5 over the final 45 minutes. Brockport added an insurance goal at 76:49 as Jon Lefort dribbled a shot past Kilroy after taking a pass in the penalty area from Abgarian.
Nazareth finished with 10 shots overall, but only three were on goal. Brockport goalie Chris Bedford easily handled all three shots to gain the shutout win. Kilroy equalled a season-high with 13 saves for the Golden Flyers.
"It's important for us now to focus on the positive and think about what we accomplished this season," said Gilbertson. "Getting to the NCAA Tournament is something that this team accomnplished that will never be forgotten."
