Fraga leads NYU-Poly to conference win over Yeshiva
Turgut and Belesis also notch first goals of season
Yonkers, NY - It took just 33 seconds to see that the Blue Jays Skyline Conference opener against Yeshiva was going to be another game that NYU-Poly would control between the eighteens. But, as has been the case for the new-look Jays, finishing their opportunities has been the team's Achilles heal. Off the opening whistle NYU-Poly went right down the field and had the first of its 31 chances at scoring- but like 28 others, this one missed.
Fortunately, in the 19th minute, Jorge Fraga's (Burke, VA / Lake Braddock Secondary) third shot of the night — arguably his most difficult — found the back of the net. Allen Rohr (Northridge, CA / Granada Hills Charter) was tagged with the assist. A short time later, Fraga set up junior Volkan Turgut in the box. The junior calmly tucked his shot past the reach of the Maccabee keeper, putting Poly up 2-0 in the 28th minute. The Jays controlled every aspect of the half, outshooting Yeshiva 19-2 and 5-1 from the corner.
The second half started off like the first ended with NYU-Poly maintaining large periods of possession and creating more dangerous scoring chances. Sophomore Joe Gabor (Warwick, NY / Warwick HS) nearly put the Jays up by three when his free kick from 20 yards out screamed just past the right post. Moments later, he would get another crack from the same spot and this time he drilled a bullet to the right side, this time skimming the post and out of play. Freshmen Omar Guerrero (Austin, TX / Stephen F. Austin HS) twice had looks at the goal, as he attacked down the left flank, but both shots were snagged by Maccabee keeper Joshua Pransky.
The Jay defense had its hands full with Yeshiva forwards Zach Stern amd David Banoun for a five minute stretch midway through the second half. In the 65th minute, the NYU-Poly defense pushed up on a cleareance to draw Stern offsides, he managed to stay on when the ball deflected back over the defense and he went to goal against NYU-Poly keeper Uriel Moreira (West Palm Beach, FL / Forrest Hills HS), putting it past Moreira and briefly giving Yeshiva hope.
The Jays answered in the 74th minute when Nick Belesis scored his first collegiate goal on a breakaway set up by Nick Michalczewski (Miami, FL / Chaminade Madenna HS). NYU-Poly nearly put the game away in the 79th minute when Rohr dribbled through the offsides trap, but his shot went just past the left post.
The Jays outshot Yeshiva 31-6, including 20 shots on goal. NYU-Poly led from the corner as well, 9-2. Moreira made two stops for NYU-Poly, while Pransky got a work-out, making 17 saves. The Blue Jays were offsides a record 16 times in the match. NYU-Poly's home opener is Wednesday night at 7:00pm at Aviator Sports Complex against non-conference opponent Manhattanville College.
GAME NOTES: This is the first back-to-back wins for the Mens Soccer team since 2000. The 20 shots on goal in one game is also a modern NYU-Poly record, as is the 16 offsides.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Jorge Fraga
