Buffalo, N.Y. –  The Le Moyne men's soccer team recorded a season-high 16 shots, along with a season-best three assists on Wednesday during a 2-2 draw at Canisius University in non-conference action.

Redshirt-junior forward Noah Sperduto (Elmira, N.Y./Elmira) and freshman forward Kjell Knaak (Aukrug, Germany/Schule Hohe Geest) recorded their first goals of the season, while graduate defender Brett Stern (Lockport, N.Y./Newfane/Duquesne) and freshman forward Felix Ludemann (Wrestedt, Germany/Herzog-Ernst-Gymnasium Uelzen) each registered their first assist of 2023 on Sperduto's goal in the 13^th minute.

Sophomore winger Cameron Stuart (Fulton, N.Y./G. Ray Bodley) tallied his second assist of the campaign by setting up Knaak's goal during the second half.

Le Moyne, which recorded a previous season-high of 15 shots during a 2-2 draw against Stonehill in its conference opener on Sunday, topped that total by outshooting the Golden Griffins by a tally of 16-12 on Wednesday.

Just like the match against Stonehill, Le Moyne faced deficits of 1-0 and 2-1, but they twice found an equalizing goal.

"It's good to see us bounce back from these deficits. Of course, I'd much prefer us to be going up in these games, but it shows the character we have in this group," said Le Moyne head coach Callum Donnelly '17, M '21. "I'm glad to see the two strikers get on the scoresheet. I was disappointed to lose the second goal because I felt we were on top in that period, so I think we can still be much more ruthless in these situations," Donnelly added.

Less than ten minutes into the match, Canisius freshman forward Matthew Fischer drew a foul inside Le Moyne's penalty area, and sophomore midfielder Daniel Longo converted the kick from the spot to give the home team an early lead. The goal was Longo's third of the year.

Similar to Sunday's match, when Le Moyne conceded in the 20^th minute and tied the game in the 22^nd, the Dolphins quickly responded against their Upstate New York foe.

Less than four minutes after conceding the opening goal, Stern sprinted forward from his right back position to intercept a Canisius goal kick, knocking the ball out of the air to the feet of Stuart.

Stern continued moving up the right wing, and Stuart led him with a pass. Stern took a touch then drove a cross to the far post for Ludemann, who headed the ball back across the goal mouth to the top of the six-yard box for Sperduto, who forcefully headed the ball into the bottom right corner of the net to record his first goal of the season and tie the game at 1-1.

The assist was the first of Ludemann's career.

The Golden Griffins regained the lead in the 27^th minute when Dylan Rice slipped a pass behind the Le Moyne defense for Michael Switala, who made a run into the left side of the box and used his first touch to place a left-footed shot on the ground past the oncoming goalkeeper and into the middle of the goal. The goal increased Switala's team-best season point tally to nine.

In the 66^th minute, Le Moyne once again tied the game when Stuart maneuvered on the right wing, faced up two Canisius defenders, spun around and moved towards the goal line, then sent a right-footed cross to the center of the six-yard box where Knaak crashed towards goal and knocked the ball into the net with his right foot to record his first career goal.

In each of their last three matches, all 2-2 draws, the Dolphins faced a 2-1 deficit at halftime, then held the opponent scoreless during the final 45 minutes and found the equalizing goal in the process.

During the 2-2 draw against Delaware on September 19, Le Moyne scored the first goal of the game, but against Stonehill and Canisius, Le Moyne had to fight back from two different deficits during the 90 minutes.

Against Stonehill, Le Moyne tied the match at 2-2 in the 65^th minute, and against Canisius they tied the game at 2-2 in the 66^th minute.

Le Moyne took eight corner kicks during the match, compared to three for Canisius. The Dolphins took four corner kicks in each half, and did not allow a Canisius corner kick during the final 45 minutes.

Freshman goalkeeper Wyatt Dupell (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) made two saves for the Dolphins.

The Dolphins, who have one non-conference game remaining on their schedule on October 10 at Stony Brook, will resume NEC play on Sunday at Central Connecticut State, before traveling to FDU on October 5 to take on the defending champion Knights.

"We are excited for a big matchup on Sunday," said Donnelly. "We know conference games have that extra edge to them, so it's up to us to manage the game better. I'd like to see us be more resolute and difficult to beat going into the game on Sunday."

Match Highlights:
With the score tied 1-1 In the 15^th minute, sophomore midfielder Bryce Koagel (West Monroe, N.Y./Paul V. Moore/Medaille) received the ball at the edge of Le Moyne's attacking third on the right side of the field and sent a pass ahead to Sperduto. With a defender on his back, Sperduto used his first touch to find Stuart, who made a quick move past his defender but was tripped up just outside the 18-yard box, earning a free kick for the 'Phins. Redshirt-junior defender Jack Goodrich (Kelsall, England/King's School Chester) took the kick, but his shot was blocked by a head in the Canisius wall.

Le Moyne retained possession following the Canisius clearance, and on their way back up the field Sperduto found Ludemann on the left wing. Ludemann moved to his right and ripped a right-footed shot that skipped towards the bottom left corner of the goal but was blocked by Canisius goalkeeper Spencer Catalano.

With 22 minutes left in the first half, pressure from Sperduto led to an interception by Stuart in Le Moyne's attacking third. Stuart sent a pass to his left for redshirt-sophomore forward Jakob Priestman (Leek, England/Westwood/Missouri State), who made a move past one defender inside the box and hit a left-footed shot that went wide of the left post.

Dupell prevented the Golden Griffins from doubling their lead in the 31^st minute when a long aerial pass from the Canisius backline put Ely Sidibe in on goal. Sidibe corralled the ball in the center-left portion of the Le Moyne penalty area and tried to slip a left-footed shot past the oncoming Dupell, but Le Moyne's rookie keeper made the save at point-blank range to keep the score at 2-1.

Sidibe, a graduate of Nottingham High School in Syracuse, created a scoring chance for the Golden Griffins with under a minute remaining in the first half when he worked his way into the right side of the Le Moyne penalty area and sent a pass to Switala at the edge of the six-yard box, but Stern deflected the shot over the crossbar for a corner kick.

The Dolphins tied the game in the 66^th minute via an impressive display of skill from Stuart, and a clinical finish from Knaak.

With a little under 20 minutes remaining in the game, Goodrich curled a corner kick from the right flag with his left foot towards the far post, but the ball sailed just over the head of graduate defender Ben Quigley (Perth, Scotland/Community School of Auchterarder/University of Stirling), who scored his first career goal on Sunday against Stonehill.

With just over five minutes remaining in the game, Canisius' Glodie Mata received the ball with space in the right side of the Le Moyne penalty area, but Dupell came off his line and disrupted the shot attempt, which sailed wide of the right post.

In the final minute of the match, Stuart earned a free kick for the Dolphins about 30 yards from goal that led to a shot for Stern, which was blocked by the Canisius defense.

With the win, Le Moyne improved to 10-0-1 all-time against Canisius. It was the first meeting between the two men's soccer program's since 1977.