TEANECK, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson men's soccer team fall to 0-2-1 in the NEC after a heartbreaking loss to Central Connecticut State University at University Stadium on Saturday night. One goal in the fourth minute was all that would be needed as CCSU moves atop the NEC standings unbeaten at 3-0. The Knights are now 7-5-1 overall.

The Blue Devils dominated possession the first five minutes of the game which included three corner kicks. The third corner kick, taken by standout sophomore forward Zach Zurita, found the head of senior co-captain Jose Gamboa for his first goal of the season. The assist was Zurita's fourth.

The rest of the first half was a chippy, back and forth battle for possession that saw FDU end the half with the advantage in shots 5-2. The second half would prove better for the Knights as they had the slight majority in possession. They would continue to pepper the goal with shots, finishing with 24 shots on the night, but nearly every shot on goal was directly at or near CCSU GK Josef Abele. Abele finished the game with a season-high nine saves and had two huge stops that preserved the lead from a Nico Wright header and a Kean Lewis low drive in the box.

The Knights finished with 9 shots on goal to CCSU's 3. The Blue Devils finished the game with seventeen fouls and three yellow cards as the game progressively became very chippy and foul-prone when needed to stymie any FDU attacks.

The Knights travel to Hempstead, N.Y. on Tuesday, October 22nd for a 7 p.m. encounter with Hofstra and continue NEC play next Sunday afternoon at University Stadium for a 3 p.m. match against LIU Brooklyn. Fans are encouraged to bring their own chairs to the game. A live stream of the match will be on NECFrontRow.com.

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