Brooklyn Boro

James saves Terriers’ third straight win

Sophomore goalie makes big stop down stretch at Bryant

March 23, 2021 John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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Taking the lead came easy for the St. Francis Brooklyn men’s soccer team Monday evening in Smithfield, Rhode Island.

Holding on to that slim advantage took a special effort from sophomore goaltender Callum James and the Terriers’ stingy defense.

Junior Sokol Ymeraj scored the contest’s only goal in the opening minute of play and James made four saves, including a game-saver in the late stages of the second half, as the Terriers held off Bryant, 1-0, before a gathering of 50 fans at Beirne Stadium.

James, who posted his second shutout of the young campaign, was provided with a quick lead when Ymeraj picked up the ball off a deflection by a Bryant defender following a cross sent into the box by junior forward El Mahdi Youssoufi.

The native Albanian fired it into the back of the net past Bulldogs goalie Jake Spaulding for his first career collegiate goal.

Following the early offensive burst, SFC (3-1) relied heavily on its strong backline, comprised of sophomore Mamadou Diallo, junior Harald Sollund, senior Vicente Gallardo, senior Domenico Pugliese and junior Andrew Adelhardt. and James’ gift for coming up with big saves.

The Bulldogs’ 14th and final shot came in the 88th minute, when Bryant’s Ben Williams took aim at tying the game, only to see James fly to his right and turn the ball away to preserve the Terriers’ first road win of the year and third in a row since a season-opening double-overtime loss at Merrimack.

James and the Terriers will look to make it four wins in a row next Monday when they visit Sacred Heart in Fairfield, Connecticut.

SFC will be back at Brooklyn Bridge Park on Monday, April 5 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson.

The Long Island University men’s squad worked hard to pull out a 1-1 tie at Merrimack Monday in Andover, Massachusetts.

After yielding an own goal in the 20th minute, the Sharks (1-1-2) had to stay the course throughout the evening until freshman Emil Jaaskelainen got them even in the 83rd with a penalty kick after being taken down in the box by Merrimack goalie Georges El-Khoury.

In a rough contest that featured 20 fouls and six yellow cards between the two teams, LIU sophomore goalie Demetri Skoumbakis made sure the Sharks survived the full 110 minutes without allowing another tally.

The Sharks will be back in action Monday, March 29 vs. visiting Central Connecticut State.

The LIU men’s soccer team managed to pull out a 1-1 tie at Merrimack on Monday. Photo courtesy of LIU Athletics

 

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In other local college sports news, the SFC women’s volleyball team will not compete for the rest of the 2021 season due to health and safety concerns stemming from COVID-19, the school announced last week.

The team will be permitted to practice through the duration of the campaign, but the Terriers’ upcoming matches against Merrimack and Bryant that were scheduled for Tuesday and Friday have been canceled.

Additionally, remaining matches against Fairleigh Dickinson, Central Connecticut State and Sacred Heart that were postponed earlier this year will not be rescheduled.

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The Nets added forward Alize Johnson to their roster on a 10-day contract ahead of their three-game road trip. AP Photo by Ashley Landis

On the pro scene, the Brooklyn Nets signed free agent forward Alize Johnson to a 10-day contract ahead of their three-game road trip.

Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released, but the Nets (29-14) likely needed to add Johnson after superstar Kyrie Irving was ruled out for the entire trip due to a family matter.

Johnson arrived in Brooklyn after playing 15 games for the Raptors 905 of the NBA G-League.

The 6-foot-7, 212-pound Missouri State alum averaged 16.6 points and 13.3 rebounds to go wtih 4.2 assists and 1.2 steals for the Raptors.

Originally drafted by Indiana in 2018, the 24-year-old Johnson put up 1.5 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in 31 contests with the Pacers over two seasons.

The Nets were scheduled to be in Portland Tuesday night before traveling to Utah Wednesday and Detroit Friday.

Brooklyn will be back at Downtown’s Barclays Center next Monday vs. Minnesota.

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