ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Oct. 20, 2016) - The passing was just too perfect and the shot was clinical; the winner came in the 95th minute and the Molloy College men's soccer team saw their six-game conference winning streak snapped in an instant by the second-ranked Pioneers of LIU Post on Thursday (Oct. 20) in a 3-2 final at RVC Sports Complex.

Molloy (9-3, 6-1 ECC) fell behind in the contest early off of a set piece in the game's first 81 seconds. An attempt on net by LIU Post (12-0-1, 5-0-1 ECC) was misplayed by goalie Raul Bonilla (Brentwood, N.Y.) with the ball taking an unfortunate high hop off of the turf at Darcy Field. In the six-yard box, Johan Mauritzson (Halmstad, Sweden) was quick to pounce on the loose ball and slot a shot into the lower corner to give the visiting side a one-goal lead. But karma worked in weird ways, as the Lions got their marker back on a miscue from Pioneers goalie Jesper Malmstrom (Linkopping, Sweden) in the 16th minute. Malmstrom attempted a clearance from the LIU Post defensive zone, but the kick was deflected by freshman Anthony Cestaro (Massapequa, N.Y.). The rookie retrieved the ball in the far corner, then put a magnificent cross onto the head of Kyle Poetzsch (Hicksville, N.Y.), whose attempt on goal beat a diving Malmstrom into the near-side pocket of the net to level terms at one-all. The good vibrations and feelings lasted a mere eight minutes, though: after Poetzsch had an attempt in the 22nd minute turned away by Malmstrom, LIU Post went on a quick counterattack that paid immediate dividends as sophomore Charlie Ledula (London, England) beat Bonilla with an attempt from just inside the 18-yard box to give his side a 2-1 lead.

The margin of deficit remained for Molloy deep into the second half with the Lions finally getting the equalizer in the 79th minute thanks to Mosiah Whyte (Coram, N.Y.). The senior forward was sent on a run from Cestaro into a one-on-one breakaway with Malmstrom, and Whyte's attempt beat Malmstrom (albeit not cleanly) and trickled over the goal line to even up the score at two. The game would go into overtime with tensions higher and the pace quickening. Molloy had one shot on goal in the extra frame as Steven Jimenez (East Elmhurst, N.Y.) put an effort on net that was saved by Malmstrom in the 93rd minute. Then in the 95th minute, Ledula and Jason Lampkin (Hawardon, North Wales, United Kingdom) played a game of tic-tac-toe passing into the 18-yard box where the ball landed to the left foot of Harry Pearse (Berkshire, London, England). Pearse rifled a curving lefty strike over the reach of Bonilla and into the top corner of the net to close out the game; in truth, Bonilla could only watch as the ball was placed in a perfect spot to give the second-ranked Pioneers the victory.

LIU Post held the shots advantage by a 14-9 margin, though both teams collected six shots on target in the contest. For Molloy, Poetzsch led the team with three attempts while Jimenez and Adam Carnwath (Fleet, England) each had two shots. LIU Post was led by a six-shot game from Pearse with Nico Kjaer Andersen (Odense, Denmark) attempting three shots in the victory. Malmstrom made four saves in the win while Bonilla had three saves in defeat.

Molloy will now host Mercy College on Saturday (Oct. 22) in a 4 p.m. contest (note the time change) at RVC Sports Complex. Stick with www.MolloyLions.com for a full preview of Saturday's game in addition to a conference playoff picture breakdown coming out tomorrow!