(SYDNEY, N.S.) The STFX X-Men (#2) defeated the UNB REDS (#3) 2-0 in the first semi-final match at the 2022 Atlantic University Sport (AUS) Men’s Soccer Championship on Thursday afternoon at Ness Timmons Field on the Cape Breton University (CBU) campus
The X-Men came out quickly in the first half, garnering a scoring chance in the opening minute, with Kyle Cordeiro (Oakville, ON) testing veteran UNB goalkeeper Louis-Charles Vaillancourt (Sherbrooke, QC) making the stop to keep it scoreless.
Conference MVP – Keji Adeniyi (London, England) – collected the first scoring threat for the REDS, but X-Men keeper Sam Diltz (New Market, ON) steered aside the shot, which banged off the far post. Before the ball crossed the goal line, a nimble Diltz pounced on it.
As an indication of how the X-Men carried the bulk of the play—particularly in the first half of the opening 45 minutes—they collected three free-kicks and two corner-kick chances in less than a four-minute span.
“We came out ready to play,” Cordeiro – an AUS first-team all-star midfielder – said of his X-Men after the match.
He noted that his team took advantage of the bye that they earned with a second-place finish in the conference regular season; using the extra time to rest and prepare.
On the final corner kick of that flurry – in the 15th minute – Logan Rieck (Cambridge, ON), the AUS leading scoring in the regular season, found freshman striker Samuel Barrowcliffe (Princeton, ON), just inside the 18-yard box, who made no mistake with a blast that eluded Vaillancourt to make it 1-0.
In the 22nd minute, Adeniyi tried to tie the contest on a soaring header, but Diltz made a great stop to maintain the X-Men’s one-goal edge. He did the same later in the half to keep the UNB goose egg on the score sheet.
In extra time, Carson Ripoll (New Glasgow, NS) and Barrowcliffe combined to test Vaillancourt, who was able to keep the REDS within striking distance.
The X-Men led 1-0 at halftime.
Early in the second half, the White and Blue continued its stellar defensive effort, thwarting any UNB scoring chances, which were few and far between.
“Our defense was the reason we won today,” Cordeiro said.
In the 60th minute, Rieck found Barrowcliffe, but Vaillancourt got his left hand on a bouncing shot that looked to be headed just inside the goalpost.
A few minutes later, Adeniyi broke free from a couple of defenders, but he could not catch up to the ball before Diltz smothered it.
With the X-Men pressing for an insurance marker, Cordeiro – with a great individual effort in the 18-yard box – double the lead to 2-0. After eluding a couple of UNB adversaries with some fancy footwork – in close quarters – the AUS first-team all-star midfielder rifled a shot that bested Vaillancourt.
Down the home stretch, when they did threaten, the REDS were more often than not led by Adeniyi, whose header in the 80th minute was directed for the back of the net, but Diltz lunged to his left and used every inch of his 6’5” frame to get a hand on the shot and send the ball wide.
Cordeiro and AUS second-team all-star Lars Gierull (Ottawa, ON) of the REDS garnered the Subway player of the match for their respective teams.
Diltz made eight saves for the win, while Vaillancourt collected stops in the loss.
STFX moves on to the AUS championship match, where they will kick off against the host and defending champion Cape Breton University (CBU) Capers or Université de Moncton Aigles Bleus on Saturday, November 5, at 2 p.m. ADT, at Ness Timmons Field.
When asked if he preferred a particular opponent, Cordeiro quickly said the Capers, a match-up that would renew a highly competitive – and sometimes heated – rivalry that has developed in recent seasons.
The battle for the 2022 AUS men’s soccer conference banner will be available via webcast live at www.AUStv.ca.