UTICA, NY (
nazathletics.com) – Nazareth men's soccer (9-4-1, 7-3-1) visited the SUNY Poly Wildcats (7-10-0, 3-8-0) on Saturday for an early 1pm conference matchup and their final match of the 2026 regular season. The Golden Flyers came out on top in the contest by a score of 2-0, powered by a strong defensive effort and a huge possession advantage.
Nazareth has earned the No. 3 seed for the upcoming Empire 8 Championships and will host #6 Alfred (7-3-4, 5-3-4) on Saturday in the Empire 8 Quarterfinals at Golden Flyer Stadium with the time TBA. The Golden Flyer defeated the Saxons 1-0 back on September 23 at Alfred.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Golden Flyers went on the attack right away to open the match, taking early shots and holding the Wildcats to their own half.
- At the 11th minute, Nazareth jumped out to a 1-0 lead. Joey Weaver took a shot that rang off the post before Cash Rosado cleaned up the rebound.
- The two squads went quiet for all of 6 minutes, before the very next shot on goal found the back of the net for Nazareth. This one came courtesy of Joey Weaver with assists going to Zyir VanScoy and Jack Lannon.
- The remainder of the opening half saw less action. The Golden Flyers recorded one more shot on goal to reach a total of 4 in the half to Poly's 0. The score stayed unchanged at 2-0 heading into the halftime break.
- A flurry of fouls kicked off the second half as the physicality ramped up, but the offenses remained stagnant.
- Nazareth continued to possess the ball and manage the game on their terms, taking 10 second-half shots, 5 of which landed on goal. Poly had their 4th and 5th tries at the goal of the match, landing their first and only shot on goal of the contest early in the closing frame.
- The Golden Flyers managed to stifle any attempts at a comeback from the Wildcats, sealing the game with a 2-0 win and earning goalkeeper Bryan Tirado another shut out.
MATCH NOTES
- Tirado notched his 6th shutout of the season
- Weaver scored his 5th goal of the campaign
- Rosado netted his 3rd goal of the year
WHAT'S NEXT
The #3 seed Golden Flyers will host #6 Alfred on Saturday, October 31 in the Empire 8 Quarterfinals with the time TBA.
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