SPARKILL, NY (Sept. 10, 2025) - Two early goals was all that found the back of the net Wednesday afternoon in New York. Georgian Court struck first, but St. Thomas Aquinas answered shortly after. The two teams then played the final 68 minutes scoreless as the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

How it Happened
• Shots heavily favored St. Thomas Aquinas who took 10 in each half for 20 total to the Lions eight.
• There were plenty of fouls as the Lions were whistled for 21 and the Spartans 17.
• STAC held possession a bit more and were up 7-2 in corner kicks.
1st Half
• Georgian Court was able to withstand a lot of St. Thomas Aquinas pressure early.
• The Lions defended three corner kicks and three shots all in the first five minutes.
• Once GCU broke that pressure, it took just one strike for them to score.
• Gijs Van Eif scored his first of the season with an unlikely assist from goalkeeper Sotirios Gkosdis for a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute. GCU took advantage of a springy turf field and Gkosdis' booming punt went over everyone, bounced high in the air and van Eif outran the defense to get a head on it and popped it over the goalkeeper who was caught in no-mans-land and into the net for a 1-0 lead.
• Van Eif looked to make it 2-0 less than 10 minutes later, but his shot was stopped by STAC keeper Dante Muntane.
• Midway through the half, the Spartans were building up their pressure again. It was their turn to try to use the turf to their advantage. A deep outlet sprung Kevon Evans who was one-on-one with Gkosdis. Gkosdis cut off the angle and got his hand up on the shot attempt, making an incredible save.
• Just three minutes later though, STAC broke through. A throw in in the offensive zone made its way into the box, bounced around and Jorge De La Vibroa was in the right place at the right time to bury it in the 22nd minute to tie the game at one.
• St. Thomas Aquinas had a late flurry, but Gkosdis made a save in the closing seconds to keep the game tied at one through 45 minutes.

2nd Half
• STAC came out strong to start the second half as well. They got three shots off in the first eight minutes, with Gkosdis making a pair of saves.
• The Spartans continued to control possession and were peppering the net while the Lions were back on their heels.
• St. Thomas Aquinas nearly took the lead in hte 71st minute, by Niek de Jong's shot rang off the crossbar and stayed out.
• The Lions mounted just three second half shots, and while Gkosdis was under serious duress in the final 45 minutes, he stood tall, keeping the Spartans off the board as the game ended in a 1-1 draw. 

Lion Stat Leaders
• Big day for Sotirios Gkosdis who made nine saves and had an assist.
• Gijs van Eif scored GCU's lone goal and totaled five shots.

For the Spartans
• Jorge De La Vibora scored on one of his two shots on goal.
• Kevon Evans picked up an assist and had a team-best four shots.
• Dante Muntane made one save in goal.

News and Notes
• David Tuschmann played in his 50th career game.
• Sotirios Gkosdis' nine save are one off his single-match high and are tied for the seventh most in a single game in program history.
• Gkosdis is actually not the first Lion goalkeeper to pick up an assist. Rylan Gentil had the first nearly 12 years ago to the day in Georgian Court's fourth game as a program back on Sept. 13, 2013 against Barry. 
• The draw snaps a three-game winning streak for the Spartans. GCU is now 1-3-1 all-time against St. Thomas Aquinas.

Up Next
• Georgian Court will have another game in NY this weekend. They head to Staten Island to take on the Dolphins of the College of Staten Island Saturday, Sept. 13. Kickoff is set for 2:30 pm.