ACPHS Men's Soccer stole a crucial victory on Sunday, defeating the previously undefeated King's College Lions 1-0, thanks to a 72^nd minute goal from senior Austin Myers.  The win improved Albany's conference record to 2-3, and strongly improved their chances of qualifying for the 2019 HVIAC Tournament. Following the loss, King's still tops the conference at 3-1-1.

It was obvious what the Panthers' plan was from the beginning: defend resolutely and hit King's on the counter. This strategy ended up a winning one for Albany, but it also led to a lot of close calls on the defensive end. Sophomore goalie Ryan Hobson made ten saves in the shutout win, each one more important than the last.

ACPHS first escaped danger in the 11^th minute, when King's unleashed three straight attempts on the Albany goal that did not find the back of the net. First, Hobson saved King's forward Edvin Loefgren's effort from inside the box, then followed that up with another save when the rebound fell to Lions midfielder Johannes Braetz. The attack wasn't finished though, as sophomore Anes Bostandzic came to the rescue and cleared a header from King's Ethan Seago off the line to keep the game scoreless.

Loefgren came close again in the 18^th minute, when he could not stear a header on target from about seven yards out. The forward finished the contest with seven of King's 19 attempts, but in the end could not find a way past Hobson.

King's continued to press their advantage in the second half, but it was the Panthers who would end up getting the game's only goal. Freshman Gavin Carvey, after defending for the game's first 75 minutes, forced a turnover in the offensive third and looked to attack quickly. The midfielder took one look up and sent in a cross that bent around the Lions defense and found an unmarked Austin Myers right at the top of six-yard box. Myers, playing his first game since sustaining an injury in the final play against Five Towns on September 22^nd, poked the ball past King's keeper Olivier Saye for his third goal of the year and sent the home crowd into a frenzy. It was Carvey's team-leading fourth assist.

The Panthers withstood the final few waves of attack to hand the Lions their first loss conference or otherwise. Myers got the goal, but it was the Panthers defense that led them to victory. Center back pairing Jensen Kelley and Blake Porte's good play kept a team averaging over five goals a game coming in out of the net entirely and gave Albany a chance to win the game late, a chance they eventually took. Hobson made ten saves in a heroic effort, improving his season record to 4-6.

ACPHS will play their final conference game on Tuesday, October 8^th when they travel to Culinary who currently sit last in the HVIAC at 0-3.