Knights Post Fourth Straight Shutout Victory

Ben Moeller

Men's Soccer | 9/19/2023 9:02:00 PM

Box Score

Albany, NY – Freshman Jonathan Dereka scored twice in the second half as the Clarkson University Men's Soccer team claimed its fourth straight non-league victory, downing Russell Sage College 3-0 on Tuesday evening.

The Golden Knights moved to 4-1-0 on the season while Russell Sage fell to 2-4-1. Clarkson opens Liberty League play this weekend when the team travels to face RIT on Saturday afternoon.

Clarkson out shot Russell Sage by a considerable margin in the first half, taking nine shots before the Gators were able to get one off. Two hard groundballs from inside the box were stopped by Tyler Brennan, one in the 16th minute and another in the 30th minute, but the Golden Knights broke through with a score late in the 34th minute. Off a throw in, the ball was carried deep into the corner, all the way to the end line before getting crossed back in front. Nolan Grady collected a pass at the corner of the six, but instead of rifling a shot off that likely would have been blocked the senior waited for sophomore Josh Conklin to come rushing into the box. Grady then sent a pass to Conklin at the opposite side of the box, and the junior hit a hard shot with his left foot from about 10 yards out to put the Knights up 1-0.

The Golden Knights would not have to wait as long in the second half for the score. The Green and Gold put pressure on the Gators early on as a header off a corner just went above the crossbar in the 56th minute, and only two minutes later Clarkson picked up its second goal. Off a cross from the right side, Logan Drake attempted to hit the ball in with his right foot, but it veered off target. Fortunately, the ball immediately found the left foot of Jonathan Dereka, who volleyed Drake's miss into the net.

Twelve minutes later, Dereka connected again, scoring his second goal of the season and third of the year. Jack Donnelly again had the ball on the right side and crossed the ball in front. Just a step or two behind the penalty kick line, Dereka hit a shot that stayed just inside the post at 69:38. Clarkson had a few more chances in the final 20 minutes, including a post shot from Conklin, but the team settled for the three-goal margin.

The win marked the fourth consecutive shutout for the Knights, including three straight by goalkeeper Josh Morelli, who made a pair of saves in the victory. Tyler Brennan stopped four shots overall for the Gators. Clarkson finished with a 21-4 lead in shots and had three corners to Russell Sage's two corner kicks.

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Players Mentioned

#18 Josh Conklin: M; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#9 Jack Donnelly: F; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#15 Logan Drake: D; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#3 Nolan Grady: M; 5' 11"; Junior

#0 Josh Morelli: GK; 5' 11"; Freshman

#16 Jonathan Dereka: M; 5' 6"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#18 Josh Conklin
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: M

#9 Jack Donnelly
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: F

#15 Logan Drake
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: D

#3 Nolan Grady
: 5' 11"; Junior
: M

#0 Josh Morelli
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: GK

#16 Jonathan Dereka
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: M