BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Northampton men's soccer team and the RCSJ-Cumberland Dukes battled through 90 minutes of scoreless soccer, ending in a, 0-0, deadlock in the season opener for both teams on Tuesday afternoon at Spartan Field.
"Tough battle to open our season and we know we had our chances," stated Spartans head coach
Mario Barrantes, "I would have liked to see us create some more offense but in the same thought I was very pleased with how we played on defense and just hung in there at the end."
Both teams had chances to get on the board but stingy defense by both squads was the storyline. The Dukes had the best scoring chance with just over three minutes remaining in first half when they were able to draw a foul in the box and awarded a penalty kick. Spartan goalie
Martin Severo (Allentown, PA/William Allen) made a diving stop to his right on the penalty to keep the Dukes off the scoreboard. Both teams traded chances the rest of the first half but were unable to convert, going into halftime scoreless, 0-0.
The back and forth continued into the early part of the second half when the Dukes started to steal momentum and controlled the ball and offensive attack the last 20 minutes of the match. The Dukes hit the back of the net with 12 minutes remaining but an offside call nullified the goal. The Spartans stayed strong on defense the rest of the way and were able to secure the, 0-0, tie to open the 2026 season.
Givanchy Durandisse (Easton, PA/Wilson) led the Spartans with 3 shots on goal and goalkeeper
Martin Severo (Allentown, PA/William Allen) recorded 11 saves in net for the clean sheet and shutout.
The Spartans are 0-0-1 overall and 0-0-1 in Region 19.
The Dukes slip to 0-0-1 overall and 0-0-1 in the Region.
The Spartans are on the road on Saturday, August 29th when they travel to Lincroft, NJ to take on the Jersey Blues of Brookdale Community College in Region 19 action at 12pm.
