Lackawanna College

8/27/26
 
Lackawanna College Athletics Summary 8-27-26
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna men's soccer played well for stretches in its season opener, but some bad spells early in each half undid the Falcons, as the visiting Chestnut Hill College Griffins took a 2-0 decision on Thursday afternoon at Schautz Stadium in the opener for both squads.
 
The Falcons (0-1-0) outshot the Griffins (1-0-0) by a 14-7 margin, and they put seven shots on goal, including six in the second half alone, but CHC got a pair of goals, one early in the first half and the other early in the second half, to stay in front.
 
After a cagey few minutes from both sides to open things up, Chestnut Hill found the breakthrough in the fourth minute, when a defensive lapse allowed a streaking Griffin down the left side, forcing keeper Kevin Nievas (West Palm Beach, FL) to scramble out. The Griffins whizzed a pass back to the middle, where Dane Bodziak finished the break with a big swing of his right leg in front of the empty net, putting Chestnut Hill up 1-0.
 
On the backfoot, the Falcons battled with the Griffins to try to get back to even terms. A Miguel Pereira (Revere, MA) strike went high of the target in the 15^th minute, and Cristian Lopez-Contreras (Guatemala) tried a long-range strike that the keeper stopped in the 22^nd minute.
 
The Griffins brought some pressure in the next five minutes, peppering the Falcons with three shots, but Nievas made a save and Lackawanna wasn't truly threatened the rest of the half.
 
To start the second, Chestnut Hill earned a free kick in a dangerous spot in the 52^nd minute, and that eventually turned into a second goal for Bodziak, who slotted home a shot from the right side to make it 2-0.
 
Now really chasing the game, the Falcons began pushing for their first goal of the season. A pair of shots from Malik Salau (Lagos, Nigeria) couldn't find the mark, including a headed ball off a corner in the 58^th minute.
 
An attempt from Tito Tokunboh-Salako (Columbia, MD) in the 75^th minute was saved, and another strike from Tito in the 83^rd was the best chance for the Falcons, but Tito skied the right-footed strike in front of the net.
 
In the 85^th minute, Brayden D'Aiello (Boyertown, PA) uncorked a strike that from the top of the box that the Griffins stopped. A minute later, Lopez-Contreras took a shot from the top that the keeper spilled out to a streaking Michael Hoy (Mechanicsburg, PA), who pounced on the rebound, but another great save kept the Falcons off the board. Chestnut Hill saw out the rest of the game to secure their first win of the season.
 
Lackawanna outshot Chestnut Hill 14-7, with seven shots on target. CHC had seven saves, while the Falcons had a pair of stops. Lackawanna earned five corner kicks in the second half. Salau had three shots, while Lopez-Contreras had a pair of shots, both on target.
 
The Falcons get back to action on Wednesday, September 2^nd, with an away contest at the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Kickoff is set for 6:00pm ET in Albany, NY.