SCHENECTADY, NY -- Two second-half goals lifted the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute men's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over Union College in the ECAC Division III Upstate Championship game at College Park Field Saturday.
Tournament Most Valuable Player Lincoln Field (Warren, NH) put RPI on the scoreboard in the 76th minute. Aaron Gundle (Portland, OR) sent a corner into a melee at the near post where Field found the ball and put it past Union goaltender Rob Kramer (Westport, CT) at 75:38.
Gundle connected with Gary Sroka (Liverpool, NY) 11 minutes later for a two-goal lead, feeding the senior from deep on the right side past a Union defender as Sroka set up in the middle of the box. Sroka forced Kramer left before placing his shot just between the keeper and the left post at 83:15.
Union (13-4-4) got within a goal just over a minute later when a Brendan Steiner (Madison, CT) throw-in cleared the front of the net, and was dumped in the net by an RPI player.
The first half featured a back-and-forth game that centered around midfield. Union came alive in the last 10 minutes of the half, forcing the ball deep in the RPI zone.
Ryan Banagan (Albany, NY) sent in a free kick from about 30 yards out, finding Alan Fox (Pittsford, NY) who got a head on it. Fox's pass found Tripp Pietrak (Amherst, NY) at the near post, and the senior captain flipped the ball over RPI goaltender Alex Penny (Northport, NY), but Mike Henzel (Niwot, CO) kept the ball from going in the net, heading it back out. The team save was one of two for the Red Hawks.
Pietrak followed with a laser from about 15 yards out with seven minutes to play in the first, but his shot sailed just over the crossbar.
Union had several chances in the second half, capped by a Steiner header that just missed the net in the 54th minute. Fox tapped a corner out to Matt Wentworth (North Andover, MA), who served the ball across into the right of the box, finding Steiner in mid-air.
Sroka had a chance to put the Red Hawks on the board in the 70th minute after forcing a turnover just outside the box, but his high shot careened off the crossbar.
Penny finished the game with four saves, while Kramer made five, all in the second half.
The Dutchmen held a 17-13 shot advantage, but shots on net were even at seven per team.
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