Sept. 14, 2005

Contact: Brian Wolff

Final Stats

MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. - Robert Morris used two second half goals to defeat the Cleveland State men's soccer team on Wednesday at North Athletic Complex. The loss drops the Vikings to 0-4-1 as they begin conference play at UW-Green Bay on Sunday.

"It was a very winnable match for us today," head coach Pete Curtis said. "We committed mistakes less frequently today, but when we made a mistake our opponent capitalized on it.

The two teams played to a scoreless first half due to the play of CSU goalkeeper Anthony DeMarco who made six of his eight saves prior to the break. The Vikings kept the match scoreless until the Colonials leading scorer, Jacek Przednowek, beat the Cleveland State goalkeeper on a one-on-one in the 73rd minute. Robert Morris would add another marker just 90 second later on a header off a cross from Ryan Zabinski.

The Vikings pressured during the last 15 minutes for a couple of late scoring chances, but RMU goalkeeper Matt Felice made four of his five saves in the second half to preserve the win. Ismail Ismail led the Vikings with four shots and Nenad Stojkovic and Cormac Finn each added three.

"We performed better today than we have in the last couple of matches," Curtis said. "There are signs that this team is coming together and that they have it in them to get the job done."

The Vikings open up Horizon League play this weekend, joining UW-Green Bay as the first two teams to play a conference match.

"Now we need to play mistake free for 90 minutes," Curtis said. "We need to shut the door on defense and capitalize on our opportunities. This Sunday at UW-Green Bay is the perfect opportunity."

Cleveland State and UW-Green Bay will meet on Sunday, Sept. 18 at 1:00 EDT.