NEW YORK — Drexel took advantage of a first-half miscue and it proved to be the difference in the match, as the Columbia men's soccer team was held off the scoreboard, 1-0, Tuesday night at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium.
 
The moment of the match came in the 29th minute. Kyle Tucker sent a ball into the penalty area for Drexel (3-4-0) that was not cleared away by the back line. The ball fell loose just outside the six, where Tiago Teixeira flicked it on for Chris Donovan, who put it away inside the left post.
 
Columbia (1-3-2) wound up with eight shots on the night but were unable to put any on goal. Meanwhile, the Dragons put eight of their 13 attempts on target. Junior goalkeeper Michael Collodi put up seven saves.
 
"We said it in game one and now I'll say it again, it's about having quality in the critical moments of the game in order to unbalance your opponent and attack. That's what it comes down to," Columbia head coach Kevin Anderson stated. "Right now, we have some volume in those areas but we don't have the quality to find open players or guys who can create those opportunities for themselves. It's not a specific group of guys, it's a team thing.
 
"But look, we continue to move forward. The frustrating part is that we can see the errors and we are in control of those things. They are basic things. We just have to stay positive and keep looking at the strengths of the group and continue to move forward."
 
Columbia's first good look came with the game still scoreless. Jake Novoshelski stole the ball away from Drexel near the midfield stripe and raced with numbers toward the Dragons' goal. He played a ball up and to his left for Bryan Cosman, who had to take a few touches to settle it but eventually fired a left-footed shot from just outside the top of the 18 that was well struck but missed by a yard or so on the near side. The Lions had one other look in the first half following the Drexel goal when Sebastian Gunbeyi got inside the right side of the area with possession but had his shot blocked away. Columbia had just the two attempts in the first half to Drexel's five.
 
The second half started much better for the Lions who were much more aggressive on the attack. Drexel did manage to get off a good look when Tucker tapped a pass away from three Columbia defenders out near the far side of the penalty area for Yassine Elkahloun. The shot was hard and driven, but Collodi was up for the challenge to keep it a one-goal game.
 
Gunbeyi would have a few looks for the Lions moments later. The first came off a deflected cross sent in by Ryan Wallace that bounced its way back right back to him. He saw Gunbeyi just behind him in the corner of the penalty area about 10 yards from goal, but the senior's left-footed shot went well wide of the target.
 
Five minutes later, Collodi sent a long ball through the air off a free kick in his own half that found Gunbeyi in a similar area. Gunbeyi was in behind the defense and slid for a shot as Drexel keeper Stephen Kopsachilis was coming toward him. However, that attempt would also miss wide of the far post. Donovan nearly made it 2-0 Dragons but was denied by Collodi as the clock hit 67 minutes. Columbia would ask some questions late, but never actually tested Kopsachilis, who did not need to record a save on the night to walk away with the shutout.
 
Columbia gets another crack at it on Saturday, hosting Iona from Commisso Soccer Stadium at 7 p.m. ET.

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