Army Overcomes Two-Goal Deficit to Tie Fairfield, 2-2

Tuesday, September 7

Fairfield, CT

7 P.M.

Army West Point

2-1-1, 0-0-0

Fairfield

0-2-1, 0-0-0

Army West Point

Fairfield

Army Overcomes Two-Goal Deficit to Tie Fairfield, 2-2

September 07, 2021 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

GAME 4
SCORE	Army West Point Black Knights - 2 Fairfield Stags - 2
SCORERS	Army West Point - Oscar Pereira 79', Justin McStay '85 Fairfield - Thomas Drillen 22', 31'
RECORDS	Army (2-1-1) Fairfield (0-2-1)
LOCATION	Lessing Field - Fairfield, Conn.

WEST POINT, N.Y. - When the Army West Point men's soccer team fell down 2-0 early in their match with the Fairfield Stags, head coach Brian Plotkin told his team one thing - to keep on fighting. The Cadets listened to their first-year head coach, and outworked the Stags throughout the second half, scoring two goals in the final 10 minutes of regulation on their way to a 2-2 tie.

Oscar Pereira and Justin McStay scored the goals, but every player on the field contributed in the effort.

How it Happened
Army did not waster time taking it to the Stags, as the first 20 minutes of the game was controlled by the Black Knights. The Cadets fired off the first three shots of the game, forcing the Fairfield defense to make a number of difficult plays to start off the game.

Senior goalkeeper Jacob Suppiah started off the game strong, punching away the first shot on goal from the Stags. Fairfield answered quickly, finding the net twice in the first half, taking a 2-0 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Coming out of halftime, Army continued to put pressure on the Stags back line, taking seven shots and putting two on goal in the first 25 minutes of the half. At the 75 minute mark Army was forced to play with just nine men after receiving a pair of cards.

The disadvantage did not phase the Black Knights as the team continued to fight and outwork Fairfield on both ends. The Cadets made it onto the scoreboard in the 79th minute thanks to a goal from Oscar Pereira, who found the bottom right corner off a pass from D'Anthony Brown.

Josh Taylor was called on to make a couple of big stops in the final ten minutes of play after jumping into the game to replace Suppiah. His two saves in the 79th and 82nd minute kept the deficit at one and kept Army in the game.

The Black Knights got the equalizer in the 85th minute off the foot of Justin McStay. The junior took the feed from Oscar Pereira, settled the ball at the top of the box and was able ot elevate his shot enough to get past the Stag keeper and tie the game up for Army to force overtime.

The Black Knights defensive backline of Brown, Jack Eaton, Bradley Schweickert and Nick Atkinson helped Taylor hold off the Fairfield attack and keep the score deadlocked. At the end of the 20-minute overtime period the score still remained 2-2.

Coach's Corner
"I love the resiliency and fight that our team showed tonight," said Coach Brian Plotkin. "To overcome red cards and a two goal deficit on the road with 20 minutes left and get the two goals to tie the game was a great display of determination and competitiveness from the group."

"They just continued on to the next play and created the chances to get back in the game and that mentality continued after the game went 2-2. It was a big challenge to play the final 24 minutes down two men. The team stayed connected and committed to defending and that got us the result in the end. I am really proud of them and we will learn and move forward. We will travel home and get our bodies right and ready to compete again on Saturday against Siena."

Cadet's Corner
"I couldn't be prouder of everyone. Every player put their heart into this game and everyone just battled and everyone left their hearts on this field tonight. We played like a family tonight." - Jack Eaton

"The defense had me covered the whole time. They were out their clearing the ball. Winning headers and making it easy for me. I was a little stressed coming on, but there was no reason to ber with these guys out in front of me. The effort tonight was unmatched." - Josh Taylor

"We were knocking on the door a lot in the firsts half, we had a lot of chances and shots going into the second half and things just fell into place at the right time for us." - John Poncy

Inside the Box Score

Oscar Pereira scored the 10th goal of his career and third on the season.
Justin McStay scored for the first time since the 2019 season.
Jack Eaton played 106 minutes to lead the Cadets.
John Poncy fired off two shots and put one on goal.
Suppiah and Talyor combined for four saves in the contest.
Atef Sikzawe made his season debut, playing 40 minutes against the Stags.

Up Next
Army will return to action this Saturday, September 11 when it hosts the Siena Saints at 7 PM. The match will be the first of three straight home contests for the Cadets.

FOLLOW ALONG
For complete coverage of Army West Point men's soccer, follow the Black Knights on Twitter and Instagram at @ArmyWP_MSoccer and online at www.goarmywestpoint.com.