By Otto Gomez
Staff Writer
The Lions got back on track after a tough 3-2 loss against Rutgers-Newark, with a stellar win against Drew University — it was their second win against a ranked opponent this season.
Junior captain, midfielder Nick Costelloe was able to strike first off a pass from senior defenseman Dan McMillan 18 minutes into the game. Costelloe has been the team leader all year, and a huge part of their team chemistry.
“Personally, I believe that the strong start can be attributed to our team chemistry,” Costelloe said. “We’re not just a team. We’re a family and that’s the motto we’ve been following this year. We work hard for each other and that’s where the success has come from.”
A couple of minutes later, freshman midfielder Nick Sample doubled the lead with his third goal of the season.
While the Lions took their two-goal lead into the second half, Drew scored two minutes after play resumed, to cut the deficit in half. It was not until sophomore midfielder Peter Dresch put the game away with a goal of his own in the 75th minute that the game was out of hand. While showing a strong offense, the Lions once again proved to be tough on defense, with junior goalkeeper Jake Nesteruk racking up two saves.
While attempting to continue their fine play, the Lions squared off against Kean University on Saturday, Sept. 26. Although they opened up the game with an unassisted goal from freshman defender Nick Provenzano, the opposing Cougars held themselves together. The Cougars tied the score at the end of the half and took the lead a couple minutes after play resumed. After a very long half of tough defense from both sides, Kean was able to string together a pair of goals in the last 10 minutes to put the game away, 4-1.
While it was a big loss on the scoreboard, it is only the second defeat of the season for the Lions, and Costelloe is not very worried. In fact, he and the entire team are still expecting to play well in the playoffs regardless of this last loss.
“I’m excited with this group and I just hope to continue to bring energy to the team and help grind out wins,” the junior midfielder said. “Going into the playoffs, I think that our team chemistry will allow us to overcome odds on the field. Meaning, I believe that when faced with a tough match in a knockout round, we will pull together to get the win.”
The Lions continue their season against Stockton University on the road on Wednesday, Sept. 30.
