NEW YORK – The Long Island Rough Riders registered a 2-1 victory over Manhattan SC to extend their Metropolitan lead to four points in a USL League Two match at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium at Columbia University on Wednesday night.
Matthew Vowinkel and Roc Carles Puig scored for the Rough Riders (9-2-1, 28 points), who avenged a 1-0 home loss to Manhattan SC (8-2-1, 24) on June 15. Manhattan has two games in hand over the Riders.
Long Island drew first blood in the 15th minute as Jayden Reid drew out Manhattan defender to the edge of the penalty area on the right flank before sending a pass to Matthew Vowinkel. Vowinkel then beat goalkeeper Alexander Sutton from seven yards for his team-high 12th goal this season for a 1-0 lead.
As the game wore on, the Rough Riders got strong and held possession for long periods of time.
Roc Carles Puig tallied for the second consecutive match and for the fourth time of the campaign as he slotted home a Nicholas Cavallo left-wing feed for a 2-0 lead in the 53rd minute.
Manhattan pulled one back in the 83rd minute to close within 2-1, spoiled goalkeeper Wessel Speel’s bid for his third successive shutout.
The hosts put another ball past Speel in the 88th minute, but Manhattan was ruled to be offside.
Five minutes into stoppage time, a Manhattan player sent a 32-yard free kick toward the LI goal that Speel snared with both hands on the goal line. After several tense moments for LI, the referee whistled the game over in the seventh minute of added time.
The Rough Riders will return home for their final two regular season games. They host the Westchester Flames to the Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale, N.Y. on Sunday, July 10 at 6:30 p.m. before welcoming FA Euro New Yok on Wednesday, July 13 at 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, the Rough Riders and their official healthcare provider, Stony Brook Orthopaedic Associates (SBOA), a practice of Stony Brook Medicine, will co-host “SBOA Health Care Appreciation Night.” They will provide complimentary ticket entry for all healthcare workers to the team’s doubleheader. The Rough Riders women play at 4 p.m.
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