STANDISH, Maine – Junior forward Godin Ndayishimiye (Bujumbura, Burundi) scored the game-tying goal in the 84th minute as Saint Joseph's College (1-2-4, 0-0-3 GNAC) battled the University of Saint Joseph (2-2-2, 2-0-1 GNAC) to a 2-2 draw in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's soccer action at the Saint Joseph's Athletics Complex on Saturday afternoon.
USJ, the two-time defending GNAC champion and preseason coaches' poll favorite, held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 before the Monks responded with an equalizer on both occasions.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
First-year midfielder Damir Brkic (South Portland, Maine) opened the scoring with an unassisted goal just 7:42 into the contest. The marker was his team-leading fifth of the season.
The Blue Jays answered just over two minutes later when Damir Cirikovic converted a feed from Nico Hamzavi at the 9:50 mark. USJ continued to apply pressure throughout the opening half and nearly took the lead in the final minute when Mario Milardo struck the post. The Monks weathered the storm behind outstanding play from senior goalkeeper Alex Bachmann (Scarborough, Maine), who made five saves before the break to send the teams into intermission tied, 1-1.
USJ claimed its first lead in the 69th minute when Hamzavi scored off a pass from Mario Milardo. The Blue Jays maintained the one-goal edge until Ndayishimiye found the back of the net at 83:06. Senior Cole Bishop (Gorham, Maine) and junior Nick Marion (Windham, Maine) earned assists on Ndayishimiye's second goal of the season.
Sophomore Zach Britton (Scarborough, Maine) nearly netted the game-winner in the 89th minute, but a good look in the middle of the box resulted in a shot that sailed wide right.
The Monks held USJ without a shot over the final 21 minutes to preserve the 2-2 draw.
TEAM STATS:
USJ held the lead in shots (15-11), shots on goal (10-5), and corner kicks (6-5) on the afternoon.
THE KEEPERS:
Bachmann made seven saves over 90 minutes for Saint Joseph's, while the Monks also registered a team save. Andres Diosa turned away three shots for USJ.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Including Saturday's draw, Saint Joseph's holds a 5-4-2 lead in the all-time series with USJ, which began in 2018. The Monks won the first five meetings by a combined score of 16-1, including three shutouts and a 3-1 victory in the 2021 GNAC Tournament. The Blue Jays entered Saturday riding a three-game winning streak in the series, highlighted by a 3-0 victory in the 2025 GNAC Tournament, but the Monks' late equalizer ended that run. Saint Joseph's is now 3-2-1 at home against USJ.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will travel to Henniker, New Hampshire on Wednesday to take on New England College in a 7:00 PM conference contest.
