Make it three-straight victories for New York University's Men's Soccer Team (3-0-1), as they defeated Kean University, 4-0, on Sunday, September 12, at Alumni Stadium in Union, NJ. Three Violets recorded a goal in the win, while rookie Arkan Tahsildaroglu (Istanbul, Turkey/Berkshire School (MA)) posted the first brace of his career to lead the offensive charge.

"We came off of a really big, emotional win yesterday in a hard-fought game that went to overtime," said Head Coach Kim Wyant. "A lot of times in those cases the team doesn't rebound at the level that they need to emotionally and mentally. We got the goal early, which I knew if we could score early we could relax a little bit and see out the game."

Oliver Kleban (Denver, CO/Blind Brook) got the scoring started in the 17th minute, taking a pass from Alex Rovirosa-Illa (Llinars del Valles, Barcelona/Hamelin Laie International ) and firing it into the lower right corner of the net. Tahsildaroglu made it 2-0 just nine minutes later, pushing a shot past Cougars' (2-1-1) keeper Dominic Ridge. 

"I'm not a guy that will score a lot of goals, but I try to find my teammates on the runs," said Rovirosa-Illa. "It's great to get assists and help the team."

In the 32nd minute, Tahsildaroglu scored again for his fourth goal in his first three collegiate games giving NYU a comfortable 3-0 advantage at the break.

Keegan Ledger (Santa Rosa, CA/Montgomery) put the finishing touch on the victory with an early second-half tally (54') and his first goal of the season, assisted by Rovirosa-Illa and Nicholas Suter (Cold Spring Harbor, NY/Cold Spring Harbor).

The Violets' stingy defense thoroughly contained Kean throughout the contest, holding the Cougars to nine total shots and just two on goal. NYU goalkeepers Luca Mancuso (Miami, FL/Montverde Academy) and Nick Vafiadis (Englewood, NJ/Bergen Catholic) split the game in net, each collecting one save. 

"We have a nice blend of experience and new guys who have a lot of energy and confidence," said senior captain Pablo Vargas (Weston, FL/Cypress Bay). "That's been the story of the season, a blend of leadership and new players that have a lot to give and are really talented."

NYU's next outing is its home opener on Wednesday, September 15, welcoming Baruch College to Gaelic Park for a 7:30 pm kickoff.