WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Sophomore back Daniel Figarella (Wappingers Falls, NY/John Jay) poked in the rebound of a saved David Nigro (Marlboro, NJ/Marlboro) shot in the 88th minute as the Monmouth University men’s soccer team defeated hOURglass rival Rider, 1-0, Wednesday night at Hesse Field on The Great Lawn. The Hawks improve to 3-5-2 (2-1-0 MAAC) with the win, while the Broncs, who entered the game ranked No. 30 in the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Rankings and No. 23 in the RPI, fall to 6-3-1 (1-1-1 MAAC).  

 

Monmouth senior goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky (Lincoln Park, NJ/DePaul Catholic) made seven saves in securing the clean sheet, including a series of three-straight stops in quick succession  off a scrum in front of the Hawks’ net to begin the 90th minute. 

 

QUOTES & NOTES

“I’m really proud of our guys. We’ve been up against it this season and they rallied up against a really good team. Rider is a fantastic program. They’ve got a lot of upperclassmen that are really talented and they’ve got a great head coach. So, for us to get a win when we were kind of trying to find our way is a tribute to our guys and the commitment that they made to our team and our jersey.” – Monmouth Head Coach Robert McCourt

 

“I’m just happy for the boys to get three points. We’ve all been working so hard and it’s just great for everybody to put in 90 minutes and get what we deserved. We go into every game with the same approach, but there was definitely a little extra fire tonight.” – Monmouth Senior Goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky

 

- Monmouth has now won three of its last four games, including two of three MAAC contests to move into a tie atop the current league standings with Siena, Quinnipiac and Fairfield, which all have six points. The Saints have played one fewer contest than the field, while Canisius has four points through two games.

- The goal was the fourth of Figarella’s career. Three of those goals have come against Rider, with one tally in each of the three contests against the Broncs over the past two years.

- The clean sheet was the first of the season for Klenofsky and the 29th of his career. 

- Over the past four years, Monmouth is 33-10-15 in games started by Klenofsky and 2-9-2 when someone else starts in goal. 

- Klenofsky earned the 33rd victory of his career, moving to within five of the MAAC’s all-time record of 38 wins, held by Nils Binstock of Iona.  

- Monmouth took a 16-7-3 lead in the all-time series with Rider.

- The Hawks are now 1-0-1 against ranked teams this season.

- Monmouth is now 3-1-1 this season when scoring first.

- The assist was Nigro’s team-leading fourth of the year, while pushing his team-best point total to 10.

- Two Hawks – freshman back Andy Martinez (Paterson, NJ/St. Benedict’s) and sophomore midfielder Anderson Asiedu (Hoboken, NJ/St. Benedict’s) have played every minute this season for Monmouth. 

 

CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS

- Both teams got off 13 shots and created quality chances. Eight of Rider’s shots were on target, narrowly edging the Hawks’ seven shots on goal. 

- Klenofsky made seven saves in the clean sheet, Monmouth’s second of the year. The Hawks also cleared a shot off the line for a total of eight saves on the night. Rider’s Ryan Baird made six saves.

- Six cautions were issued in the game, with Monmouth drawing four yellow cards to Rider’s two.

- Monmouth took a 6-2 advantage in corner kick opportunities. 

- Figarella and Nigro led the Hawks with two shots on goal each. Figarella and Colin Stripling (Scotch Plains, NJ/Scotch Plains-Fanwood) had three shots apiece overall to lead Monmouth.

 

UP NEXT

The Hawks return to MAAC play Saturday, when they travel to Niagara. Kickoff from Niagara University, N.Y., is slated for 1 p.m.