Published: September 01, 2007
QUEENS, N.Y.
In front of 1,472 fans, the Red Storm (1-0-0) kicked off the 2007
season with a 2-0 win over Fairleigh Dickinson. Adam
Himeno tallied the team’s first goal of the season early
in the second half and Ryan Soroka added a goal
later in the half as well.
“A lot of guys contributed tonight,” said head coach Dr. Dave
Masur. “A lot of guys played and we found out some answers,
but we still have some question marks as we look towards our next
game.”
The Red Storm’s first chance came nine minutes into the first half
when sophomore Nelson Becerra fired a shot wide of
goal. Just minutes later Becerra had another opportunity that
bounced off of the post. Following a foul in the closing
minutes of the first half, Soroka fired a shot that beat Fairleigh
Dickinson goalkeeper, Elvir Prasovic. However, defender
Xavier McFarlane was in just the right place and came up with a
save of his own to keep the Red Storm off the board.
Scoreless at halftime, St. John’s maintained possession during the
early stages of the second half. In the 55th minute,
Jara Habib brought the ball down the left side of
the field. He stopped and faked out a defender before sending
a cross into the box. Himeno was there waiting and sent a
header right into the back of the net.
The Red Storm extended their lead in the 76th minute when Soroka
tallied his first goal of the season. Sophomore Alex
Paszek lobbed a long pass over the defense that fell right
at the feet of Soroka. Soroka then chipped a shot from 20
yards out that beat Prasovic.
For Red Storm junior keeper Neal Kitson, it was a
night of firsts. The game marked Kitson’s first career start,
win and shutout in a Red Storm uniform. Paszek also tallied
his first career point with his second half assist.
St. John’s returns to action at home on September 2 against
Fairfield. The game is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. and
follows the 5:30 p.m. match up between Buffalo and Fairleigh
Dickinson.