GENESEO, NY – Backed by three goals in the second half, the University of Rochester men's soccer team earned its third straight victory on Wednesday, topping host SUNY Geneseo 3-1 at College Stadium.
 
Rochester's goals were scored by senior Kol Bassuk, graduate student Kamal Ibrahim and junior Alessio Cristanetti-Walker. Bassuk added one of five assists on the day for Rochester, with Pasquale Carusone, Sebastian Ballesteros, Jasper Danielian and EliJose Araujo each getting a point in the victory.
 
Ben Ziegler made one save in the Yellowjacket goal, while Geneseo keeper Max Crothall was peppered all evening with shots, finishing with ten saves.
 
In the first half, Rochester took eight shots, seven of which were on frame, but Crothall made saves on all of them to keep the game scoreless. UR's best opportunity was on back-to-back chances by Ballesteros and Ibrahim in the 32nd minute.
 
Rochester added back-to-back corners in the final minute of the period, but Geneseo was able to defend those away and sent the teams into halftime with the scoreboard reading 0-0.
 
In the 53rd minute, Bassuk put Rochester on top with his second goal of the season. After a corner kick, the ball pinballed around the box and found Danielan on the right side. A cross got sent into the six, where a back-heel flick from Ballesteros found Bassuk near the right post for a one-timer goal.
 
Less than two minutes later, the lead doubled on a breakaway from Ibrahim following a long pass up from Bassuk. The play caught the Knights defense off guard, with UR grad student sprinting in from the right side before chipping a 6-yard right wing shot over Crothall and into the goal.
 
Danielian nearly made it three goals in a four-minute span, but his attempt following a corner kick was saved away by Crothall.
 
Another set piece yielded Rochester's final goal of the night, coming at the 73:13 mark. The initial corner got sent into the box where Carusone headed it towards the left side to a wide-open Araujo.
 
Araujo chested the ball to himself and followed with a left-footed rocket of a pass towards the right post where Cristanetti-Walker was unmarked and easily headed in the ball for the 3-0 Yellowjackets lead.
 
Down the stretch, Geneseo was able to break the shutout with a goal off a corner from Francesco Visone with just two minutes remaining.
 
Rochester's win propels the Yellowjackets to 5-2-2 on the season, while SUNY Geneseo drops to 4-4-1. Up next, UR remains on the road and takes on York College of Pennsylvania on Saturday afternoon, with kickoff set for noon.