BOX SCORE

The men's soccer team began their schedule on Wednesday night with a 1-1 draw against the Pioneers from William Paterson University.

The non-conference match featured 39 total shots and five yellow cards on a warm evening at the legendary Met Oval in the Maspeth section of Queens.

In addition, for the third straight year, the match went to overtime in what has become a truly tightly contested rivalry between schools from the regional CUNYAC and NJAC conferences.

Baruch (0-0-1) took control in the opening minutes by out-shooting the visiting Pioneers (2-0-1) with an 8-1 margin, and were rewarded for their early success when senior striker Daniel Wright (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst) scored a goal on a well placed cross inside the box by freshman Daniel Ospina (Queens, N.Y./Francis Lewis).

The Bearcats had several opportunities to increase the score, including a solid strike by freshman Dominick Cinquemani (Queens, N.Y./Christ the King), but the Pioneers defense kept the deficit to one goal.

William Paterson, which made several keen substitutions in the first half to jump start their offense against Baruch's strong creativity in midfield, saw Helder Andrade (Ocean Twp., N.J./Ocean Twp.) enter and he eventually sent a perfect through ball that sliced the defense to meet star striker Julian Valerio (Manalapan, N.J./Manalapan) for a one-on-one opportunity to beat the goalkeeper.

William Paterson could have added their second goal on a handball call that resulted in a penalty kick opportunity for Valerio in the 50th minute, but his shot against junior goalkeeper Nelson DiBastiano (Queens, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) hit the cross bar.

Both teams worked hard to find the back of the net one more time, including the visiting Pioneers who dominated the shot category in the second half and overtime periods (17-6), but the match ended in a tie.

DiBastiano, a team captain and one of the true team leaders, finished the busy evening with 10 saves, while Cinquemani recorded two shots on goal in a solid collegiate debut.

Freshman Jacob Cohen (Great Neck, N.Y./Great Neck North) and senior Camilo Reyes (Bogota, Colombia/Woodlands) each finished with three total shots.

Baruch will return to action Saturday at the Met Oval with a Noon time match against Manhattanville College.