Team Effort Pushes Men's Soccer to Victory Over Rhode Island

By Thomas Swanzey | September 8, 2025

Ivar Gissurarson (#7) was one of three Great Dane goal scorers Friday night

Photo Credit: Bruce Dudek | UAlbany Athletics  

On Friday (9/5), the University at Albany Men’s Soccer team defeated the University of Rhode Island (URI) Rams with a score of 3-0. 

The early minutes of the game were dominated with fouls by both the Great Danes and Rams. Just past the eight minute mark, a corner kick by UAlbany fell flat from a shot off midfielder Ivar Gissurarson. 

In the 17th minute, URI goalie Caleb McNeil made an impressive save off of a shot from forward Shawn Tanaka. 

The Rams’ defense held their own during the first quarter on several occasions, clearing the ball out of the box numerous times. 

Great Dane attacker Andre Navas had a good chance in the 25th minute; however, it narrowly missed the net. 

In the 40th minute, UAlbany got on the board when a cross from David Barkan was headed into the Rhode Island net by Issac Filippo, past a diving McNeil, to make the score 1-0. 

The Great Danes would keep the score 1-0 going into halftime. In the first stanza, UAlbany had an 8-0 shot advantage over URI. 

The Rams would come out firing in the second half, as they were able to create multiple chances, including a near miss from Takumi Kumakura in the 49th minute; however, they were unable to find an equalizer.

Despite the early pressure from URI, the Great Danes would make the score 2-0 in the 65th minute, as Tommy McFadden used his head to put the ball in the net from Rodrigo Hermelo off of an Alexander Clive free kick. 

In the 74th minute, the Rams nearly scored, but goalkeeper Andrej Krivokapic made an important save. 

Five minutes later, UAlbany would add a third, as Ivar Gissurarson deposited a pass from Andre Navas with a thundering shot into the URI net to make the score 3-0.

The Rams would attempt to get on the score sheet as time ticked down. However, they were unable to do so, as the Great Danes would complete the shutout. 

With the victory, UAlbany improved to 2-1-1 overall, while the Rams fell to 0-3-1. 

The Great Danes’ next home game is scheduled for Tuesday Sept. 9th when they will take on the Marist Red Foxes with kickoff scheduled for 6:30 pm at Casey Stadium.