YORK, PA - The York College Spartan men's soccer squad erased a 2-0 deficit in the last ten minutes of their Wednesday night matchup against the Susquehanna University River Hawks. The Spartans scored a pair of goals in the last 12 minutes of regulation as the squads finished the game tied at two for the non-conference draw.
The Spartans are now 1-1-2 while the River Hawks are 0-2-2.
 
How it Happened
• From end line to end, the two opponents mirrored each other in every aspect of the game in the early going. Both teams traded opportunistic runs and shots on goals with each goalie easily keeping the game scoreless.
• The first real scare York had was on a breakaway after Susquehanna cleared an 18th minute corner kick. A strong boot flipped the field and led to a one-on-one shot for Max Paczewski against Spartan keeper Michael DiPierro who sent the shot out of bounds with both hands. 
• Susquehana finally broke the tie with a 32nd minute, unassisted goal by Packewski, who sped past defenders after a Spartan turnover and found the net with a laser. 
• The start of the second half did not result in any slowing down, with both teams keeping the same urgency. York fired off eight total corners in the second round of 45 minutes, but could not answer the River Hawks initial goal for much of the second half. 
• Susquehanna received some insurance from a MJ Dungo shot off of a deflection that found the uppermost part of the left corner of the goal in the 69th minute to put the maroon and orange up 2-0. 
• York remained persistent despite missed chances and the game turning chippy with multiple hard fouls and two bookings, with both teams being penalized with yellow cards in the last thirty minutes of play. 
• The Spartans finally got on the board with a Jack Mitzelfelt goal in the 78th minute off of a nice touch pass from Matt Martin. It was Mitzelfelt's first tally of the year, coming off his team leading ten goals in the 2022 season. 
• Not satisfied with just preventing the shutout, York kept on the attack. Brandon Holy had been finding teammates all night on free kick sets and corner kicks. He was finally granted an assist when his 80th minute free kick found Tyler Howlett over the heads of multiple Hawks for a header to tie the game. It was both Holy and Howlett's first points of this season. 
• DiPierro did his part in keeping the tie with an 87th minute save, capping off his career high six save night. 
 
Spartan Notes
The Spartans are now 27-9-5 all-time against the River Hawks … York had won five straight in the series entering Wednesday night's game … York is now unbeaten in their last seven against the Hawks, a streak that started with a 2014 tie, one year before the eventual five game tear for York … the Spartans matched their season high in goals with two … York fired off a season-high 20 shots in the draw … York's five goals have been scored by five different players … sophomore Michael DiPierro owns a 1.00 goals against average and a .786 save percentage as he is now 1-0-2 … York held a 12-3 bulge in corner kicks for the game.
 
Up Next
The Spartans once again hope to break .500 for the first time this season when they face the 2-2-1 Lancaster Bible Chargers in Lancaster on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7:00 pm at Willis and Martha Herr Stadium in Lancaster. The Spartans hold a 3-1 edge in the all-time series but it will be the first game between the two programs since September 1, 1996.