Antigonish, NS - The StFX X-Men (1-1-2) battled the Cape Breton University Capers (4-0-1) to a scoreless tie in AUS soccer action Friday night at Oland Stadium.
"A great point for StFX X-Men soccer tonight – a 0-0 tie with the [CIS] #3 ranked CBU Capers. We were extraordinarily strong in the back tonight, I thought. Our center backs – Dustin Benetti (Calgary, AB) and Serge Dossou (Calgary, AB) – were dominant in and around our 18-yard box. Our two fullbacks that completed the back four were fantastic," X-Men head coach Graham Kennedy said.
"Team shape was really good. We gave up the majority of possession, of course; Cape Breton probably dominated the vast share of possession, but our team shape was excellent and we got a solid, workmen-like point tonight."
The Capers, who scored 19 goals in their first four matches, could not penetrate a stout X-Men defense, with junior goalkeeper Matthew Lannan (Port Williams, NS) making six saves for the shutout.
Scott Shewfelt (London, ON), the Caper player of the match, turned aside five X-Men shots.
The Capers recorded 20 shots, while the X-Men garnered eight.
In the opening minutes of the match, X-Men fifth-year senior Randy Ribeiro (Cambridge, ON) got in behind the Caper defenders for a brief moment, but Zak Riley (Liverpool, UK) made a sliding tackle in close before the StFX midfielder could get a shot away.
Defending CIS player of the year Justin Maheu (Ottawa, ON) made his presence felt a couple minutes later, when he ripped a strike that grazed the crossbar behind Lannan.
Jan Jiskra (Prague, Czech Republic) probably had the best scoring chance of the first half for the X-Men when he raced in behind the Caper defense, but Shewfelt came charging off his line and thwarted the opportunity. Upended on the play, Jiskra left the match with a leg injury and did not return.
In the 54th minute, Lannan stymied Joel Eckert-Ayensa (Pulhaim, Germany), who looped a hard strike on goal from a free kick.
Four minutes later, Maheau whistled a blast beyond the reach of Lannan, but it missed wide of the left post.
In the 85th minute, the X-Men had a golden opportunity to break the scoring goose egg, when Dossou – his team's player of the match – soared for a header off a corner kick by freshman midfielder Dan Hayfield (Exeter, UK), but Shewfelt lunged to his left to make the stop.
The Capers will be back on the pitch Sunday, Sept. 27, when they host the Acadia Axemen, at 3:15 p.m., in Sydney.
The X-Men return to action, when they face the Mount Allison Mounties in Sackville, NB, beginning at 3:15 p.m.