A struggling team’s battle to end its woes has often been compared to quicksand because of the feeling that the harder you fight, the deeper you sink. For the RPI men’s soccer team, this feeling may be all too familiar. With an eight game losing streak on their hands, the Red Hawks just can’t catch a streak of luck, score a timely goal, or get out of the funk they are currently in.
For Rensselaer, this weekend brought games versus Keene State College and Vassar College, as the men looked to turn things around and get a new kind of streak going.
Just under 20 minutes into its first game of the week, Keene State was able to score the first goal of the game, which ultimately amounted to being the game winner. Ryan Farnsworth, a sophomore on the Owls, gathered a loose ball on the right side of the field and then fired a shot into the upper right corner of the net for the goal.
With the final score of 1-0, Keene State didn’t need to score any more throughout the course of the game. RPI, however, did all they could to mount a comeback, and had various opportunities to do so. The Owls outshot the Red Hawks just by two, 12-10, as Rensselaer barraged the Keene State goalie with seven shots in the second as the men did all they could to fight back.
In the second half, the Red Hawks had a few of their best chances to score. Junior Aaron Gundle had a drive and a solid shot at the goal roughly halfway into the second half, but his shot went high, flying inches over the crossbar.
Freshman Ben Russell took an initial shot on Keene State’s goal, and the goalie had trouble with the ball as it rolled free. Russell had a second chance to score it, but Farnsworth, who scored earlier for the Owls, knocked the ball away, providing a very important save for his team.
Gundle had one last shot to tie the game with three minutes remaining in the contest, but Owl goalie Peter Kersker made a diving save to put an exclamation point on the day, terminating any chances of an RPI comeback.
Next up for the Red Hawks was Vassar College. Sophomore Tim Wisner put RPI ahead in the first half at the 30:47 mark after collecting a loose ball, maneuvering around a defender, and then drilling a shot into the left side of the goal from 18 yards out. Wisner’s goal, however, would not be foreshadowing the rest of the day’s events.
In the second half, Vassar turned the tables on Rensselaer. Brewers junior Ben Fox tied the game when he headed a ball off a pass from a teammate past senior RPI goaltender John Thibdeau for the score.
Just four minutes later, Adam Marsh was also able to score for the Brewers, giving Vassar the lead and momentum as RPI now found itself in an all-too-familiar hole.
With the score standing at 2-1, the margin grew again, making things even harder for the Red Hawks. Senior Owl Court Steiner took a pass from a teammate, and in the same manner as teammate Fox before him, headed the ball past Thibdeau for the score. The final score was 3-1, as Rensselaer picked up another loss.
RPI’s record now stands at 4-10, with three games remaining on the schedule. Up next for Rensselaer is Clarkson University at 4 pm on Friday, and then St. Lawrence University at 2 pm on Saturday, both games home at Harkness Field.
