ALBANY, N.Y. (Aug. 25, 2022) – Powered by the game-winning goal in the 88th minute from senior Benjamin Van Buren (Anderson, S.C./USC Upstate), the Mercy College men's soccer team opened its 2022 season with a 2-1 come-from-behind victory against The College of Saint Rose on Thursday night at Sullivan Field.

The Mavericks (1-0) win their first season opener since 2019 and defeat the Golden Knights (0-1) for the fifth straight time.

Mercy was led by Van Buren who recorded his first goal as a Maverick. Junior Daniel Rodriguez (Caracas, Venezuela/Erskine College) scored his first goal as a Maverick in his Mercy debut and had a team-high two shots on goal. Sophomore Eirik Elvestad (Oslo, Norway/Blindern VGS) made one save in 90 minutes of action to pick up the win.

Saint Rose was paced by Hilmar Halldorsson who scored. Ryan Henning made three saves to take the loss.

The game remained scoreless until the 11th minute of action when Saint Rose scored to take a 1-0 lead. The Golden Knights drew a penalty kick after a Mercy yellow card. Halldorsson took the penalty kick and Elvestad made the initial save, but Halldorsson put home the rebound to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.

It stayed 1-0 heading late into the first half when Rodriguez scored his first goal as a Maverick in the 42nd minute to tie the game at 1-1 after driving in a loose ball in the middle of the field. The score remained tied at 1-1 heading into halftime with shots tied at 4-4.

It was 1-1 heading into the final five minutes of the game and a draw looked like a distinct possibility. However, following a free kick Van Buren headed a loose ball over the charging goalkeeper's head to give Mercy a 2-1 lead in the 88th minute. The Mavericks backline withstood a late Saint Rose corner to secure the season-opening win.

Saint Rose held a 10-9 edge in shots, but Mercy held a 5-2 edge in shots on goal. Mercy held a 5-3 edge in corner kicks.  

Head Coach Pedro Velazquez and the Mavericks look to make it two wins in a row when they host New Haven in their home opener on Sunday, August 28th at 3 p.m.