BENNINGTON, Vt. – The Southern Vermont College men's soccer team lost a close-fought season-opener on the road at Bard College, 1-0, Friday night. The non-conference match was fairly even in both periods of play, as each team had to work hard to string passes together and create opportunities for themselves.
The Mountaineers outshot Bard 14-12, however the Raptors' eventual game-winner came off the foot of senior Oscar Valdes (Havana, Cuba) in the 67th minute. SVC freshman goalkeeper Christopher Dunham (Valley Falls, N.Y.) recorded five saves in his collegiate debut.
"It's still early in the season," mentioned SVC coach Tim Penrod. "We're going to have our strengths and weaknesses, so we really need to identify and work on those weaknesses in order to make ourselves better." Penrod commented on the play of midfielder Tommy Youngblood (Leonardtown, Md.) saying, "It was probably one of the best games I've seen him play. If that's a sign of what he's going to do for us this year, then he's going to have a very good sophomore season." Freshman Ruben Oliveras (Pico Rivera, Calif.)had five shots, two on goal.
"We learned a lot about ourselves tonight," said Penrod, "which will help going into Sunday's game." The Mountaineers host Salve Regina University in their home-opener on Everett Field at 3:30 p.m. Bard College next faces SUNY Cobleskill at home Saturday night, 7:00 p.m. kickoff.