TORONTO - After a thrilling, yet disappointing finish, the Ryerson Rams men's soccer team tied the Queens Gaels 2-2 Sunday afternoon at Allan Lamport Stadium.
The Rams [2-0-2] had a 2-1 lead after forward Vince D'Elia scored late in the second half, however a last minute breakdown and corner-kick led to a tying goal in stoppage time by Queen's defender Justin Vermeer.
"That was not one individual's fault that we lost the win," said Ryerson Coach Ivan Joseph. "That was a lack of composure in the final three minutes. A young team has got to learn how to keep a victory."
Alex Braletic, who sat out yesterday's game against RMC, made his presence felt early scoring the opening goal and assisting on D'Elia's tally. Despite his own and the team's play, he isn't ready to settle for the draw.
"We would have been happy with this [tie] last year, but certainly not this year. We let one get away from us, but it's better to let it happen now. We're going to get sharper for next game," said Braletic. "We will win our next game."
David Tom had the other goal for the Gaels, scoring in the 20th minute to make it 1-1 at the break.
The Rams admit that they would like to have played a more disciplined game, especially against a team as tough as Queen's, but despite a yellow card to Kevin Souter, the officiating was not a factor in today's result.
With the tie, the Rams stay undefeated to start the season, and have only allowed two goals against, both coming in today's contest. The goaltending duo of Christian Maraldo and Aaryon Gaeeni are standing tall for Ryerson, both vying for the coveted starting position.
"Right now it's a real struggle between the goalies," said Maraldo. "All the little mistakes count."
If the alternating system stays intact, Gaeeni is due up and will put his clean sheet to the test against the undefeated University of Toronto Varsity Blues. The Rams will look to put today's result behind them when they face the cross-town rival Blues at Varsity Centre, Sunday at 3:15pm.
