ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Oct. 2, 2016) – Senior midfielder Orlando Castaneda (Bethpage, N.Y.) scored on a set-up feed from rookie Anthony Cestaro (Massapequa, N.Y.) in the early stages of the second half as the Molloy College men's soccer team overcame a sluggish first frame to claim a 4-0 victory over Daemen College on Sunday (Oct. 2) at RVC Sports Complex.

The first quarter-hour of the game went by without incident as both Molloy (5-2, 3-0 ECC) and Daemen (1-9, 0-4 ECC) spent the better portion of the first fifteen minutes with the ball in the midfield zone. The Wildcats were the first team to record a shot as freshman forward Ali Shawish (Lackawanna, N.Y.) one-timed a bounce pass directly into the arms of Molloy keeper Raul Bonilla (Brentwood, N.Y.) for an easy save in the eleventh minute. A defensive struggle continued to ensue as neither team made any impressionable efforts on net against either Bonilla or Justin Figler (Grand Island, N.Y.) in what was a rather low-key first half. Molloy had an opportunity in the 27^th minute with the game's first corner, but the ball was cleared off the line by Sean Palmer (Clarence, N.Y.) and the Wildcats' defense. Another chance came in the 43rd minute, as Kyle Poetzsch (Hicksville, N.Y.) won a foot-race to a ball at the top of the 18-yard box only to have a streaking Figler parry away his header attempt.

Shawish had the best opening chance of the second half for the visitors on a cutting feed from Cole Beale (Hamburg, N.Y.) in the 53^rd minute, but he placed his effort just wide. The attempt came after Poetzsch's first shot of the latter half was tipped away by Figler a few minutes beforehand, as the play became more aggressive as time ticked down. Molloy finally struck in the 55^th minute off a throw-in deep inside Daemen territory. At the edge of the playing surface, senior Mosiah Whyte (Coram, N.Y.) lifted a cross through the box that fell to the head of Cestaro. The freshman midfielder headed a feed back to the waiting foot of Castaneda, who rifled a shot past the reach of Figler and into the back of the net.

The insurance marker for the maroon and white came on a nifty pass play from the feet of Cestaro once again. This time it was in the 66^th minute, as the freshman slotted a feed to the top of the box for a waiting Adam Carnwath (Fleet, England). The junior transfer sent a low bounce shot to the far corner, beating the dive of Figler to the back post for Molloy's second goal of the game. Whyte picked up a late goal with under five minutes remaining from a long pass off the foot of Lucio Sorto (Baldwin, N.Y.), while freshman substitution Angelo Bordenca (Flushing, N.Y.) closed the scoring with his first career goal.

The Lions were the aggressors in the first half, holding a 7-3 shots advantage that quickly dissipated in the second frame. The maroon and white held on to the shots battle, but only on a 17-16 margin. Molloy held another edge with four corner kicks while the Wildcats were unable to set up a play from the corner flags. Bonilla recorded another successful clean sheet, needing just two saves to do so. Figler was charged with a tough loss, making four saves over the ninety-minute period.

The Molloy College men's soccer team will trek out-of-conference on Tuesday (Oct. 4) for a 6 p.m. home contest at Darcy Field with the Greyhounds of Assumption College.