After a humbling loss at Connecticut on Saturday, the no. 15 St. John’s men’s soccer team bounced back with an impressive 3-1 victory over Columbia on Tuesday evening amongst a Belson crowd roaring with vuvuzelas.
Goals from Nick Matthews, Jelani Williams and Jimmy Mulligan handed the Red Storm (6-1-3, 0-1) their fourth home win of the season.
“I was glad to see that we came out with the right amount of energy,” said St. John’s head coach Dr. Dave Masur. “It was good to see us capitalize in the second half the way we did.”
The Johnnies controlled much of the first half’s possession, refusing to let Columbia find an offensive rhythm, but were unable to find the back of the net.
Despite this, senior left back Jack Bennett made his presence known throughout the first 45 minutes as his two first half shots troubled Columbia (2-5-1) keeper Kyle Jackson.
The Red Storm’s closest opportunity to open the scoring came in the 13th minute when Bennett crossed to sophomore Jordan Rouse whose shot to the far post was saved by Jackson.
When the second half began, Masur’s men wasted no time as junior midfielder Nick Matthews got his team on the board in the 46th minute thanks to a double assist from seniors Andres Vargas and Bennett.
“It was unfortunate that we weren’t able to finish our chances in the first half because I thought we played very well,” Masur told RedStormSports.com. “Getting that quick goal after halftime, though, really set the tone for a productive half.”
Jelani Williams gave the Johnnies a two-goal lead in the 64th minute after controlling a long ball from senior forward Jimmy Mulligan, which left the freshman forward free to crack a shot past Jackson.
Columbia cut the Red Storm’s lead in half nine minutes later when Henning Saeubier squeaked a shot beyond the reach of Diaz.
However, the Lions’ hopes were quickly crushed a mere two minutes later when Jimmy Mulligan lobbed a shot over the keeper’s head after a miscued pass.
The Red Storm will resume Big East conference play Sunday when they travel to Chicago to face DePaul.
