Plainview, New York (June 2, 2010) - The Long Island Rough Riders men’s team battled to a 1-1 draw with the Westchester Flames Wednesday night at Cy Donnelly Stadium. Luke Magill equalized for Long Island in first half stoppage time after Keith Detelj had put Westchester ahead in the 15th minute.
Opportunities were abundant for both teams from the opening whistle, and Long Island nearly struck first in the 2nd minute of play. Danny Kramer set up fellow midfielder Ben Arikian with a low cross from the right side of the 18-yard box, only to see the shot miss over the goal.
Kramer was the provider once again in the 11th minute. His shot attempt deflected to forward Stephan Barea, whose driven shot from 15 yards was saved in the bottom right corner of the net by Flames’ goalkeeper John San Filippo.
Long Island paid for its wasted opportunities in the 15th minute. Westchester’s Keith Detelj combined with Richard Heredia to open the scoring on a line drive into the left side netting.
The Rough Riders’ defense settled down after the goal, as Rhett Bernstein’s aerial prowess and William Hole’s quickness kept the Flames at bay.
Long Island evened the score in first half stoppage time when game M.V.P. Magill finished Kramer’s corner. The ball was swung in from the left side, and Magill used his strength to hold off a defender and muscle the ball into the back of the net from two yards away.
Forward Michael Todd almost put Long Island ahead in the 67th minute. Kramer beat his man along the right side and crossed to Todd at the near post, whose diving header found only the side netting.
In the 83rd minute, Sam Craven put Mark Secko through on goal, but with a defender closing in, his right-footed shot from 18 yards went wide left.
The Rough Riders thought they had won it in the 87th minute. Jimmy Nealis’ shot from the left side was deflected into the back of the net by Arikian, only to be called back for offsides, making sure the game ended at one goal apiece.
The result brings the Rough Riders’ record to 3-0-2 (11 points). The Long Island Rough Riders next home game is June 12 at Cy Donnelly Stadium in South Huntington against the Western Massachusetts Pioneers at 7:30 p.m.
For complete game stats, please visit: http://pdl.uslsoccer.com
Article by Jeff Gordon
