Jersey City, NJ... The College of New Jersey men's soccer team is heating up at the right time as the Lions won their third straight conference game with a 4-2 road victory at New Jersey City University on Wednesday.
 
TCNJ brushed off an early one-goal deficit to score three straight times in the opening period and then traded goals in the second to secure the win.
 
That kept the Lions right in the thick of the playoff race in the New Jersey Athletic Conference as they have nine points with two games remaining. The top six teams qualify for the conference tournament and TCNJ is currently in seventh place. They are 9-4-2 overall and 3-4 in the conference.
 
The Gothic Knights fell to 1-14 on the season and 0-7 in the NJAC.
 
After the hosts grabbed a 1-0 lead 19:56 into the game, freshman defender Joerg Jauk (Lassnitzhoehe, Austria) took advantage of a bad clearing attempt and tied the game with his second goal of the season. That came 29:46 into the period.
 
The Lions needed only 1:57 to get on the scoreboard again on a goal by freshman Nick Zolofra (Holmdel, NJ/Holmdel). That goal was assisted by Michael Kassak (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown).
 
TCNJ added a third goal before the end of the half when senior Greg Kaye (Morganville, NJ/Marlboro) tapped in another failed clearing attempt by NJCU.
 
The Gothic Knights got one of those goals back just 12:13 into the second half, but the Lions didn't flinch. Junior Nick Costelloe (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Twp.) regained that two-goal cushion just over 12 minutes later. That was his team-leading 11^th of the season.
 
Lion keeper Jake Nesteruk (Doylestown, PA/Central Bucks East) tied a season high with six saves as he recorded his ninth win of the season.
 
TCNJ looks to continue its conference winning streak on Saturday when the Lions get an early start against William Paterson University. Game time is 11 a.m. in TCNJ's Soccer Complex as the game kicks off the festivities for "Homecoming 2015."