NEW LONDON, Conn. – The No. 6 Connecticut College men's soccer team broke loose offensively in the second half to down New York University, 3-0, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday afternoon at Freeman Field.
 
The Camels set a school record by winning their 15th game of the season and advanced to the third round for the second straight time. They eclipsed the program's previous mark of recording 14 victories all the way back in 1978.
 
The first half played out very similarly for Connecticut College as previous postseason contests, as the Camels dominated possession and had numerous opportunities in which they just couldn't finish. The team's best chance came in the 19th minute shortly after a corner kick. Freshman Marco Cerezo (Malaga, Spain) received a short pass from Matt Scoffone (Thornton, Pa.) and took a turnaround shot from just outside the box that was headed towards the upper right corner of the net. However, goalkeeper Nick Vafiadis made an acrobatic save to keep the match scoreless at the time.
 
Connecticut College (15-4-1) scored two goals within 10 minutes of one another by taking fouls and making the Violets pay for them. In the 60th minute, the Camels earned a free kick from the left sideline right in front of their bench, and sophomore Rye Jaran (Downingtown, Pa.) sent in a cross that was headed home into the bottom right corner by MT Tshuma (Magwegwe, Zimbabwe).
 
The hosts then doubled their lead in the 69th minute after sophomore Jake Creus (Rye, N.Y.) was taken down inside the box while threatening to extend the margin himself. Junior Steve Yeonas (McLean, Va.) was chosen to take the penalty kick, and he buried the opportunity for his fourth goal of the season.
 
Riding a wave of momentum, junior Augie Djerjdaj (Mahopac, N.Y.) tallied an insurance marker in the final minutes to put the match away. After taking a pass from sophomore Jorge Mendo (Zaragoza, Spain) and having an initial strike in the 85th minute hit off the crossbar, the NESCAC Player of the Year took a throw in from Mendo a few minutes later and rocketed a shot from nearly the same spot that landed in the upper left corner of the net to seal the final outcome.
 
Junior Sam Maidenberg (South Orange, N.J.) earned another shutout victory by only having to make two saves for Connecticut College, which outshot the Violets by a lopsided 24-4 margin and had an 8-0 advantage in corner kicks. Vafiadis of NYU (11-6-1) stopped five shots in the loss.
 
Connecticut College, which is making its fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, will face Redlands in the third round next weekend at a site to be determined.