ITHACA, N.Y. -- Senior All-American Connor Miller scored with less than four minutes to go, and for the second straight year the Cornell men's soccer team beat UC Santa Barbara on a late goal, this time in a 2-1 win over the 21st-ranked Gauchos on Friday night at Berman Field. The Big Red improved to 2-0 on the year, while UCSB slipped to 1-1-2.
Miller settled it in the 87th minute of an electric second half, finishing a left-footed shot at the top of the penalty area after a quick sequence of passes from Blake Donahue and Lennon Harrington. It was his first goal of the season and the game-winner in Cornell's home opener.
It's the second straight season Cornell has needed a late goal to beat UC Santa Barbara. Liam May won last year's meeting between the two programs with an 89th-minute goal in a 1-0 Cornell victory in Santa Barbara, California. This time, the Big Red needed Miller's late strike after UC Santa Barbara had erased an early deficit.
"I thought it was an excellent game. It didn't seem like just our second game of the season - tt was almost played with postseason intensity," said John Smith, the Dr. Daniel P. Wood Head Coach of Men's Soccer "Quite often that happens when you play against a really good opponent. I thought we were fairly dominant in the first half - probbaly could have capitalized on some of the opportunities we created, but we didn't. The second half was a bit more even, although I do think we outweighed them in terms of chances created. We rode our luck when they hit the bar, but two great goals, and overall, really an excellent performance against a very good team."
Smith, who claimed his 91st victory as head coach at Cornell to match the all-time record also held by Jack Writer, steered Cornell to its 600th win in program history in the process.
After a long halftime delay to repair a light bank that went out at the break, Adam Schaban put Cornell ahead in the 47th minute, taking the ball away from a UC Santa Barbara defender and sliding home a left-footed shot off a cross from Andrew Miles on the right flank. It was Schaban's second goal in as many games to open the season.
UC Santa Barbara answered in the 68th minute when Steinar Bjornsson curled a right-footed shot from 25 yards off an assist from Donovan Sessoms, tying the score at 1-1 and setting up Miller's late heroics. The visitors had narrowly missed leveling the score after hitting the crossbar two minutes before finding the equalizer.
Cornell out-shot the Gauchos 20-4, including a 6-2 edge in shots on goal, and held a 12-0 advantage in corner kicks. Filip Versterre made one save in goal for the Big Red, who were whistled for just eight fouls to UC Santa Barbara's 21.
Though no scoring ocurred in the first 45 minutes, Cornell did its part with a 9-0 shot advantage and a 5-0 edge in corner kicks, but despite the heavy territorial advantage, it was the second half that saw all the fireworks.
The Big Red heads on the road for a key three-game road swing beginning with a contest at No. 9 Akron on Tuesday, Sept. 8 at 7 p.m.
