HANOVER, N.H. — Despite constantly pressuring the opposing goal nearly the entire match, Columbia men's soccer played to its first goalless draw in over two years, splitting the points with Dartmouth on a cold Saturday night at Burnham Field.
 
Columbia (3-5-4, 1-1-2 Ivy) picked up its fifth point of the Ivy League season, inching closer to league-leading Yale (3-1 Ivy). The Bulldogs remain at nine points after suffering their first league defeat Saturday night at Penn. Meanwhile, Dartmouth (5-6-2, 2-1-1 Ivy) is in a three-way tie for second with Princeton and the Quakers.
 
"I think we put together some really good moments and we were fairly consistent for the majority of the game," Columbia head coach Kevin Anderson stated. "We did a pretty good job on both sides of the ball. What we weren't able to capitalize on is the hardest part of the game. We played on our front foot for a good portion of the game and that is what we're trying to do. It's a big step for this group."
 
The biggest defensive moment of the night came midway through the first half when first-year goalkeeper Michael Collodi saved yet another penalty. Columbia had dominated the opening 25 minutes of the game with successive threats and did not allow a single Dartmouth shot to reach its keeper before Collodi was asked to face his third penalty of the season. Just as he did against his first two, the Frisco, Texas native answered the call with a diving save to his right to keep the score level. It was one of Collodi's three saves to earn the rookie his second collegiate shutout.
 
"We created and solidified things on both sides of the field," Anderson went on to say. "We gave up a penalty but Collodi came up big for us again which was great to see. In fairness, I thought that moment was the biggest opportunity of the game for Dartmouth."
 
The Lions did find the back of the net in the third minute but correctly had the goal waved away for offside. They continued to apply pressure in the opening part of the game, as a shot from up close by Sebastian Gunbeyi was blocked away and a left-footed volley by Matthew Swain had to be dealt with by Dartmouth keeper Alex Budnik. He wound up with seven saves on the night.
 
Columbia won a free kick in a dangerous area just a few minutes after Collodi's penalty stop. John Denis stepped over the ball from five yards outside the area and curled a hard right-footed attempt toward the post that may have snuck in if not for a diving save to Budnik's left. Another opportunity came Columbia's way in the 32nd minute as Beto Carrillo fired in a shot that skipped away from Budnik toward an onrushing Gunbeyi. The Columbia forward slid in and beat Budnik to the ball but didn't have enough room to get it by.
 
The stat sheet showed the Lions with a 55-45 possession advantage at the half. Sixty percent of Columbia's possession came in the Dartmouth side of the field. That percentage increased to 70 as Columbia pressed forward through the second half and overtime.
 
Arguably Dartmouth's best 10 minutes came to open the second half. A scramble in the penalty area momentarily caught Collodi out of position but there were plenty of Lions behind him to clear away Patrick Murphy's shot.
 
Ten minutes into the half, the Lions turned up the pressure. Two Columbia corners and shots by John Denis, Danny Laranetto and Sebastian Gunbeyi all took place over an eight-minute span. Gunbeyi got a second look at his in space, volleying the deflection out of the air but watching it bounce a few yards right of the post.
 
Eighty minutes in, Denis was sent through off a give-and-go with Laranetto. He got his shot away from the top-right portion of the box but it dribbled just wide of the left post. Denis got off another attempt from a similar area two minutes later that was picked up by Budnik.
 
One more dangerous look nearly put Columbia on the board in regulation. A headed ball off a Dartmouth defender came down to Matthew Swain in stride about 30 yards from goal. The senior rushed toward the area, side-stepped another defender and scorched a left-footed shot toward the far post that Budnik had to fully extend for in order to save.
 
Columbia sent in more chances for game-winning goals through the two 10-minute overtime periods but ultimately were unable to score. It ended the Lions' 19-match streak with a goal, which was the second-longest in program history – the longest was 24 matches between the 1979 and 1980 seasons.
 
"The guys were not happy with walking out of there with only a point, which is good," Anderson added. "At the same time, you want to keep the team balanced. You don't want people too high or too low off one result."
 
The Lions return to Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium on Tuesday for a non-conference matchup against Fordham. Ivy League play continues next Saturday, when Columbia will have its crack at Yale.
 
For the latest on the Columbia men's soccer program, follow @ColumbiaMSoccer on Twitter and Instagram, on Facebook at Facebook.com/ColumbiaMensSoccer and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.