NEW YORK — The Columbia men's soccer team remained unbeaten all-time against Manhattan, scoring three goals in its first victory of the 2023 season, 3-0, Tuesday night at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium.
The victory was the first in the Columbia head coaching era of Michael Casper. The Lions broke through on first-year Chad Baker's first collegiate goal midway through the first half. They put it away in the second half, scoring 15 seconds in off the foot of Will DeNight. Fifteen minutes later, the senior did it again, blasting in his third goal in two matches to put any doubt in the final result to rest.
"We scored three wonderful goals and, in this game, goals change games," said Casper, who won 71 games in eight seasons as the head coach at Saint Francis University. "We scored goals at the right moments to give us that advantage. It looks like a comfortable scoreline but it never really felt that way throughout the match. I thought Manhattan was excellent but full marks to our guys for scoring three wonderful goals and changing the game for us."
The final stat sheet showed a near 50-50 split in possession but Columbia made the most of its opportunities. After the Jaspers fired a few wayward shots early, the Lions settled in and got their first shot on target off the foot of
Alessandro Franciosa in the 18th minute. The buildup continued into the midway point of the period when
Carmine Falco gained possession down the near touch line. He slipped past a defender and slid a ball perfectly through the area for Baker, who floated in a cheeky one-touch shot off his left foot just inside the far post to give the Lions the lead.
"It felt great to get on the scoresheet in just my second collegiate game," Baker said. "But I think really today it's more about the team as a whole. The team has been great in training these last couple of weeks. Everyone worked really hard today, whether you started or came in off the bench, and I thought the guys on the sideline provided great support today. It feels good to get a win and, hopefully, this is the start of a new era of winning here at Columbia."
Baker was one of those Lions coming in off the bench, entering the game in the 19th minute before slotting in that goal less than 10 minutes later. The goal had the Lions leading 1-0 at the break.
It took just 15 seconds of the second half for
Will DeNight to score for the second time in as many games. A ball played back toward midfield was sent forward by
David Walley. His pass found
Brandon Newman, who dribbled in traffic before releasing
Will DeNight into the area. DeNight acted quickly, taking one step into the box and slotting a right-footed shot to the keeper's left to double the lead.
"We're working hard and I think we've always been a united team off the field, but we are really starting to see that translate to on-field play," said DeNight, who currently leads the Ivy League with his three goals. "All of these goals came in the run of play – great buildup, great passes through – all of us, our incoming guys, have integrated so well. I'm so excited for training tomorrow, for our next game on Friday. It just doesn't get better than this."
While the two sides managed just seven combined shots in the second half, the Lions put away two of their three. Just over 15 minutes after doubling the lead, DeNight struck again. This time, it started off a brilliant slide tackle by
Alessandro Franciosa that won the ball back to the feet of
Carmine Falco. The sophomore quickly played it up to Walley, who turned and fed DeNight into the top-right corner of the penalty area. The senior took a control touch before blasting a hard right-footed shot into the top-right corner. The celebration was on.
The final 30 minutes seemed academic.
"We're going to learn from this game. One of the things we talk about is trying to take something we can learn from every game, win or loss," Casper added.
Columbia will have its first road test of the season on Saturday at Sacred Heart. The match is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.
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