ONEONTA, N.Y.- The Oneonta Red Dragons defeated the Plattsburgh Cardinals, 2-1, to win the 2017 SUNYAC men's soccer championship. 

On a cool afternoon in Oneonta, the #2 Red Dragons took on #5 Plattsburgh, a Cinderella who was coming off of a 3-0 victory against top-seed Cortland earlier this week. Both teams were looking for a win that would propel them to an automatic NCAA playoff berth.

The first twenty minutes of the game saw a defensive stalemate. Both teams battled back-and-forth as their goalies made several tremendous saves. Then, in the twenty-first minute, Tournament MVP Witman Hernandez headed a crossing pass from Austin Hughes to put Oneonta up 1-0. The rest of the first half went without scoring from either side. 

In the fifty-fourth minute, Plattsburgh was able to strike back. Joe Gula headed a throw-in from Jah-heem Lawitz that found the back of the net to tie the game at one. 

Less than ten minutes later, in the sixty-third, Roberto Ventura dribbled up the left side of the field and drilled a shot from twenty-yards out. This laser ended up being the game-winning goal, as Oneonta's defense stood tall for the last twenty-seven minutes of the physical game that featured four yellow cards and one red card.

Plattsburgh Goalie Patrick Feeley recorded four saves against two goals allowed while his counterpart, Nicholas Giordano, also had four saves while surrendering one goal. 

This conference championship brings Oneonta's total to ten overall, tied for second all-time. 

Elite 20 Award

The SUNYAC Elite 20, an award modeled after the NCAA ELITE 90 program, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the conference championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. This year's winner for men's soccer was Oneonta's Daniel Ioos, who has maintained a 4.0 GPA. 

All-Tournament Team