Box Score / Standings / Photos

TROY, N.Y. – Junior Zach Fane headed in a fantastic cross by senior Julian Coy at 58:20 of the second half and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's soccer team held on for a 2-1 victory over Keene State College in the regular season home finale on Renwyck Field.  With the win, the Engineers move to 7-5-4 overall, while the Owls slip to 9-7-1.
 
Locked in a 1-1 tie after a penalty kick goal from sophomore Scott Douglas (East Greenwich, RI/East Greenwich) at 50:13 into the second half, the Engineers responded as Coy (Bristow, VA/Brentsville District) raced down the right side and saved the ball from going out of bounds.  Spinning, he was able to cross it into the middle as Fane (Troy, NY/Lansingburgh) headed it in to the left side past the Owls keeper at 58:20.
 
The RPI defense held solid over the final 30 minutes of play, limiting the visitors to just four shots in the frame and just one shot on goal in the game.
 
It was a back-and-forth battle to open the game as the homestanding Engineers held an 11-3 advantage in shots through the first 45 minutes.  While both teams had chances, Rensselaer was the first to capitalize as junior Mike Birk (Albertson, NY/Mineola) chipped it in at 41:39.
 
Off a corner by senior Alex Papageorgis (Montclair, NJ/Montclair), the ball flew into the box in traffic onto the foot of junior Sean Southall (Streetly, England/QMCS).  His ensuing shot was blocked, but the ball came out the Birk, who raced in at the left side and sent it up over the goaltender for the 1-0 lead.
 
The Engineers took the advantage into the second half, but saw the game become even at 1-all as the visiting Owls were awarded a penalty kick following a rough tackle in the box.  Douglas – the team's leading scorer – made it count as he lined up and fired the ball into the low left corner to tie it up.
 
In goal, RPI rookie Rob Dewald (Arlington, VA/Washington-Lee) posted his fourth win of the season and was not forced to make any saves in the game.  He is now 4-2-1.  For the Owls, sophomore Malcolm Cheney (Hopkinton, MA/Hopkinton) made one save in the first half, before giving way to senior Paul Blackmer (Boylston, MA/Tahanto).  He suffered the loss to fall to 0-1-1 and did not have any stops.
 
The win also marked the third career victory over the Owls for RPI head coach Adam Clinton, who is 1987 graduate of Keene State.  He is now 3-4-2 all-time against his alma mater.
 
Rensselaer concludes its regular season schedule on Saturday, traveling to Nazareth for a 11am game against the Golden Flyers.  Keene State also concludes its regular season on Saturday, hosting Western Connecticut State at 1pm.

For news and updates regarding RPI men's soccer, fans can follow Engineers Athletics on Facebook (RPI Athletics) and via Twitter (@rpiathletics).  Photos of Rensselaer student-athletes can be purchased at http://www.rpiathletics.com/photos.