Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne men's soccer team earned a point in the Northeast Conference Standings on Sunday after recording a 1-1 draw against Saint Francis University (4-0-6, 2-0-2) at Ted Grant Field.

The SFU Red Flash currently sit tied in second place in the conference standings and have yet to lose a game this season.

The Dolphins, who recorded a 2-2 draw against Stonehill during their previous home match, are now tied for sixth place in the standings alongside the Skyhawks.

The Red Flash struck first on Sunday when sophomore defender Charlie Lucero hit the back of the net with a header in the 31^st minute, but the Dolphins tied the game with a header of their own in the 37^th minute as redshirt-junior defender Jack Goodrich (Kelsall, England/King's School Chester) sent a corner kick into the box for redshirt-sophomore midfielder Ziad Abdul-Malak (Manlius, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) who redirected the ball into the back of the net.

Abdul-Malak, who recorded a career-high three points last time out at Stony Brook with a goal an assist, finishes the week with five points, and is second on the team in points with seven this season. Goodrich leads the Dolphins in points with three goals and four assists.

The Dolphins outshot the Red Flash by a tally of 7-3, and Le Moyne limited the visitors to just one shot on goal during the 90 minutes. 

A Saint Francis player was issued a red card in the 72nd minute, forcing the Red Flash to play with 10 men for the remainder of the match.

The 'Phins are now 1-1-5 in their last seven matches, and they will play another home conference match on Thursday against Merrimack.

"I thought a draw was probably a fair reflection on the game," said Le Moyne head coach Callum Donnelly '17, M '21. "It was a match that didn't have much flow to it. I came away slightly frustrated with how we performed in the last 20 minutes when we had a man up. I think we could have showed more composure to create better opportunities.
"I'm pleased with aspects of how we are playing. I thought we looked slightly leggy today though. We didn't have that zip in the final third that we've had for the last while. We need to be at the top of our game to get the three points on Thursday," Donnelly added.

With a little under 17 minutes remaining in the first half, Le Moyne graduate defender Brett Stern (Lockport, N.Y./Newfane/Duquesne) won possession for the Dolphins near midfield, then sent a pass ahead to freshman forward Felix Ludemann (Wrestedt, Germany/Herzog-Ernst-Gymnasium Uelzen) in the right side of Le Moyne's attacking third.

Ludemann dribbled towards the penalty area, then dropped off a pass to his left for Abdul-Malak. Abdul-Malak cut to his right to get past a defender, then navigated between three defenders in the box before setting up redshirt-junior forward Noah Sperduto (Elmira, N.Y./Elmira) with a right-footed shot outside the top left corner of the six-yard box.

Sperduto's shot was hit hard on the ground, and it beat the SFU goalkeeper, however junior defender Torren Aikens was able to block the shot in front of the goal line to keep the match scoreless.

Lucero and SFU freshman midfielder Joschi Schelb combined to give the Red Flash a 1-0 lead in the 31^st minute.

Schelb dribbled into SFU's attacking third, then tapped a pass to Lucero just outside the top of the 18-yard box. Lucero sent a back heel back to Schelb with his first touch, and Schelb used his first touch in the left side of the penalty area to send a cross to the middle of the box where Lucero placed a header into the left side of the goal.

The goal was the first of Lucero's career, and Schelb tallied his NEC-leading fifth assist on the play.

In the 37^th minute, Ludemann won a corner kick for the Dolphins. Goodrich took the corner from the right flag and whipped a cross in to the near post where Abdul-Malak rose high in the air and redirected a header into the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1.

"We have worked hard on set pieces in the last few weeks, and I'm glad that we've scored another goal from it," said Donnelly. "Credit to the delivery from Jack, and it's another goal for Z."

The goal was Abdul-Malak's third of the year, which ties him with Goodrich for the team lead. Goodrich recorded his team-best fourth assist on the play.

It is the second consecutive game that Goodrich assisted Abdul-Malak off a set piece. During Le Moyne's 3-3 draw at Stony Brook on Thursday, Goodrich took a free kick near the right flag, sent a cross to the near post, and Abdul-Malak flicked a header past the goalkeeper to tie the match at 3-3.

Goodrich has contributed a combined six points during the last four games, while Abdul-Malak has compiled all seven of his points during Le Moyne's last six contests.

A little under five minutes into the second half, the Dolphins took a throw in from the left sideline about a yard from the corner flag. Redshirt-sophomore forward Jakob Priestman (Leek, England/Westwood/Missouri State) received the ball just outside the 18-yard box, then made a quick move towards the end line.

Priestman poked the ball towards the middle of the penalty area, but it was cleared away by SFU towards the opposite sideline.

Stern tracked down the ball, took a big touch forward, then drove a pass in the air towards the edge of the six-yard box. Abdul-Malak nearly got a head on it, but could not connect on the attempt and the ball flew wide of the left post.

With just under 18:30 remaining in the match, a long ball was played towards the top left corner of the Le Moyne penalty area, and a collision between an SFU attacker and Le Moyne goalkeeper Wyatt Dupell (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) resulted in a straight red card for Saint Francis, forcing the Red Flash to play a man down for the remainder of the contest.

With just under five minutes remaining, a long ball was played towards the right corner flag for Le Moyne sophomore midfielder Cameron Stuart (Fulton, N.Y./G. Ray Bodley) and he was able to keep the ball inbounds with a bit of skill.

Stuart made a move past an oncoming defender, then dribbled towards the penalty area. He made a move towards his left past another defender and was brought down, but no foul was called. As play continued, Priestman drew a foul just outside the penalty area. He took the free kick himself, but his shot hit the top of the SFU wall.

With seven total shots against Saint Francis, the Dolphins snapped their six-game streak of taking at least 10 shots.

Thursday's match between Le Moyne (1-5-6, 1-1-2 NEC) and Merrimack (4-5-2, 2-2-1 NEC) at Ted Grant Field will kick off at 3:00 p.m.

After that, Le Moyne will hit the road for an NEC clash at Howard (0-9-1, 0-4 NEC) on October 22, then they will travel to LIU (5-4-3, 2-0-2 NEC) on October 29.

The Dolphins will conclude the regular season at home on November 2 against Sacred Heart (5-6-2, 2-1-2 NEC).