The NYU men’s soccer team breezed by crosstown rivals the Polytechnic Institute of NYU Blue Jays 5-1 in their second game Saturday afternoon. This victory puts the Violets’ season at 2-0 after they defeated Baruch College with standout freshman forward Reece Barton scoring both the tying and winning goals in the second half.
“We’ve been working really hard in practice,” Barton said.
In the humid New York City heat, senior midfielder Chris Ramirez assisted Barton to score the first goal at three minutes of play, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
The Violets stayed on the offensive with Ramirez and senior midfielder Colm Dillane, respectively, scoring the second and third goals, ending the first half with a strong 3-0 lead over NYU-Poly.
On the back half of the pitch, the Violets’ strong defense held their opponents to only three shots on goal and with two saves from junior goalkeeper Forrest Sexton, the Violet defense was beaten only once.
In both the first and second halves, NYU-Poly goalkeeper Paul Lima saved seven shots on goal from the Violet’s offense. But with another successful shot by Barton, his fourth goal of the season, and one more from freshman forward Bryan Walsh, the men were able to sweep the Blue Jays in an impressive 5-1 victory.
“We still need to work on a lot of things, but we got the wins,” senior defender Juan Velez said. “We’ve got a good group, but we have to keep improving from game to game.”
The team’s hard work showed in their second victory of the season.
The NYU men’s soccer team will take on Brooklyn College in their next match on Friday, Sept. 6 at 11:00 a.m.
The women’s squad played the State University of New York at New Paltz to a 1-1 draw, as junior forward Amelia Hammerl chipped the ball over New Paltz goalie Anna Connell to score the game-tying goal in the 81st minute and force an overtime period.
After the Violets’ sophomore goalie Arianna Strome was beaten in the second minute of the first half, NYU put on an offensive clinic outshooting the Paltz Hawks 24 to three, but they lacked the resolve to finish and get the win. They will look for the second win of the season on Saturday, Sept. 7 against Haverford College in Hoboken, N.J. at 2 p.m. for the kickoff of the Stevens Engineering Cup.
A version of this article appeared in the Tuesday, Sept. 3 print edition. Josie Luck is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].