Ewing, NJ … The College of New Jersey men's soccer suffered a 2-1 setback in overtime at the hands of Stevens Institute of Technology under rainy conditions on Wednesday night in Lions Stadium.

Ducks (2-1) freshman Cristiano Hocken scored his second goal of the game 2:37 into the first overtime to give Stevens the victory. Dribbling down the right side, he struck a cross that caught the foot of a TCNJ defender and caromed high up into the air and over the head of goalkeeper Michael Kayal (Mahwah, NJ/Mahwah). The sudden and awkward finish ended over 90 minutes of competitive play, mostly played in steady rainfall.

Stevens took an early lead with a goal 17:45 to play in the opening half. Hocken got free behind the backfield and took possession after a misplayed ball. He raced down the right sideline and slotted a hard shot along the ground into the left corner for his first collegiate goal.

The Lions (2-1) battled to get the equalizer and had two quality chances in the opening period. Junior Matt Skinner (Allentown, NJ/Allentown) nearly put TCNJ on the board when he flicked a close shot just outside the left post. With just over 10 minutes remaining in the period, classmate Joerg Jauk (Austria) pushed forward on a restart and headed a restart just wide of the right post.

Trailing 1-0 in the second half, the Lions' offense struck in the 70th minute. Junior Nick Sample (New Egypt, NJ/New Egypt) received short a pass just across midfield and took space towards the box. With the defenders falling back and failing to contest, Sample capitalized and cranked a low shot from just outside the box into the right-hand corner.

With 11:11 remaining, TCNJ nearly took the lead when Ryan Vazquez (Kinnelon, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) turned the corner on his defender and cut in towards the net. He tried to sneak a shot near post, but Duck keeper Aaron Henry held on for the save.

Just moments into the overtime period, Vazquez got off a great shot that Henry dove to his right to snag out of the air. Henry finished with three saves, while Kayal registered two stops. Stevens held a 13-11 advantage in shots.

TCNJ is back in action this weekend when they compete in the All Sports Café Roanoke Invitational. They take on Lynchburg College at 3 p m.


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