Panthers Win an Intense Matchup in Crucial Game for the Men’s Soccer Team

By Shaya Silberstein

The Purchase men’s soccer team came into the match against SUNY Old Westbury, needing a win to keep their Skyline Conference playoff hopes alive. They won 4-2 in a matchup that was full of tension.

The Purchase soccer team warming up before the game. (Photo by Shaya Silberstein)

The Panthers entered the game needing two wins in their next two matches to stay alive and control their own destiny in the Skyline conference playoffs. The match kicked off in disaster for the Panthers, as miscommunication and poor defense helped Old Westbury score just two minutes in.

From there, the Purchase Panthers regrouped and fought for possession for the rest of the first half, tying the game in the 14th minute after taking advantage of a mistake that led to an Outman Ait Sidi Ahmed goal.

The rest of the first half would be a back-and-forth battle for control, as Old Westbury would try to capitalize on turnovers but could not get through because it was caught offside. Tension would build as Purchase committed multiple fouls, but Old Westbury would fall short of scoring yet again.

This is where Purchase would take over, scoring two goals in three minutes as Jacob Pence and Yahir Tafoya each found the net in the 36th and 39th minutes of the game.

Nicholas Nunez trying to get the ball past the defenders. (Photo by Shaya Silberstein)

In the second half, the tension grew even more, leading to multiple red cards for Old Westbury players.

Purchase would then go on to score a fourth goal after a foul by Old Westbury resulted in a free kick, as Christos Argyros put one into the back of the net.  

The Panthers ultimately won 4-2 in the 90 minutes of play.

The Panthers setting up a free kick after a foul. (Photo by Shaya Silberstein)

“We showed what Purchase soccer is all about,” said Coach Bruno Ferreira about the resilience and toughness the team showed after allowing the first goal of the game. “Our backs were against the wall, it was a must-win game, we got three points, and that is all that matters. Now we have one fighting chance to make the playoffs; we control our own destiny. We have a very important game on Wednesday. If we win, we’re basically in.”

“I think we came out a little slow,” said captain of the team, Luca Li Vigni, a new media senior, on the team effort on the field, “but after conceding the first goal, we kind of woke up a little bit and put three in there [Old Westbury’s] goal. In the second half, we came out strong and attacked as hard as we could. We got that fourth goal, and we kind of fell asleep in the last 15 minutes, but we got away with the win, which was really important, and we see how we do on Wednesday.”

“It was a very aggressive game,” said Outman Ait Sidi Ahmed, an undeclared freshman. “We just conceded first, but we came back, we showed our mentality of how strong we are and came back and scored four goals on them.”

The Panthers face off against the University of Mount Saint Vincent in a must-win game.