Men’s soccer comes up short against Hartford

Anthony Santaga finished off a corner kick in the eighth minute, leading Hartford (7-7-1, 1-3-1 AE) to a 1-0 victory over Binghamton (6-8-0, 2-3-0) in an America East Conference men’s soccer game on Oct. 20, at the Bearcats Sports Complex. The game concluded the Bearcats’ season-high three-game home stand.

The first time the Hawks were given a corner kick, they made the most of their early chance. James Stamopoulos fired a cross that was initially headed by Simon Turesson. Awaiting the free ball, behind the Bearcat defense, was Santaga, who fired the ball into the net for his seventh goal of the season.

Both teams had excellent chances to score during the remainder of the first half. Binghamton had a goal called back in the 18th minute due to an offside call. In the 39th minute, Javonni Simms of Hartford took advantage of a wide-open net. He fired high, however, and the halftime score remained 1-0.

After being outshot 9-3 in the first half, Binghamton held a 10-4 shot advantage in the final 45 minutes of play. The difference, however, was Hartford goalkeeper Viltsu Tuumi, who made nine saves to record the shutout. He made a pair of kick saves during the match and two clutch saves within the final three minutes of regulation.