The Alfred State men's soccer team won the Allegany Mountain Collegiate Conference Championship for the first time with a victory over Mt. Aloysius. After the Pioneers and Mounties were knotted up at 1-1 after regulation and overtime, ASC took the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament with a 4-3 victory in penalty kicks.
Mt. Aloysius took the lead in the 1st half when they scored on a penalty kick. Ali Mata Ruiz (Westbury, NY) tied the gam up in the 76th minute with sixth goal of the season.
Neither team could score in regulation or in either of the two, ten minute overtime periods. With the game tied at 1-1 the game was decided in penalty kicks.
The Mounties shot first in the shootout and led 1-0 after the first round. Brayden Fox (Homer, NY) made a diving save in the second round before Jack Leahy (Pittsford, NY) scored to tie it up. The third round started with the MAC shot sailing high. Jackson Powers (Syracuse, NY) followed with a goal to give ASC the lead 2-1. Both Nuri Sarbudak (Pittsford, NY) and the Mountie shooter scored in round three. After MAC tied it at 3-3, Alexander Romero (Central Islip, NY) secured the victory when his shot found the back of the net to set off a celebration for the Pioneers.
Fox made two saves in regulation before his big save in the shootout.
Jack Leahy, Brayden Fox, and Andres Mateos (Batavia, NY) were named to the All-Tournament team.
Alfred State entered the AMCC Tournament as the #3 seed and was playing in the program's first Championship match. The team will enter the NCAA Tournament next weekend with a 17-3-1 overall record.
The team will find out who and where they will play in the first round of the national tournament on Monday afternoon at 2 p.m. The Pioneers last played in the postseason with in 1994, when ASC won the NJCAA Region III Championship.