Albany, NY - On Sunday, September 14 the ACPHS Panthers hosted the SUNY ESF Mighty Oaks. This was the 3rd match of the season for the Panthers, who last faced NHTI in the Panther Invitational finals. 
 
"The men came out of the gates strong and played well throughout much of the game, and had an excellent outing from freshman goal keeper, Matt Houlihan," stated ACPHS Head Soccer Coach, Rich Komulainen. Unfortunately, due to a couple of misques and strong play from SUNY ESF (6-0) the Panthers (1-2) fell 4-1 to the Mighy Oaks.

The Panthers lone goal came from freshmen, Jack Hanlon who found the back of the net 19 minutes into the game. As play continued, SUNY ESF mounted a string of strong attacks but couldn't solve the ACPHS defense and the excellent play by Matt Houlihan. SUNY ESF finally tallied a goal in the 36th minute when the Mighty Oaks were awarded a penalty shot for a takedown in the ACPHS penalty area. The 1st half ended at score of 1-1.

The Panthers started the second half with great play and effort but were not able to sustain the level of play against the persistent SUNY ESF attack. SUNY ESF scored what proved to be the winning goal 27 minutes into the second half when they sent a perfectly placed corner kick to the middle of the penalty area and were able to head it into the goal. Shortly after, SUNY ESF again found the back of the net with a set play header. SUNY ESF completed their scoring in the 34th minute with their second penalty kick of the game.
 
Next game for ACPHS is Wednesday, September 17, when they host Hudson Valley Community College at 4:00 pm. This will be a true test for the Panthers who are out to redeem themselves against the Vikings who beat them 3-1 in 2013.