MONTREAL – Rookie forward Massimo Di Ioia of Blainville, Que., exploded for four goals as the McGill Redmen rallied to defeat visiting Concordia 4-2 in a crucial men's soccer contest at Molson Stadium, Sunday evening.
 
The game was a testy affair, featuring eight cards as the cross-town match-up was virtually a must-win affair for both teams.

McGill, which improved to 1-2-1, was without starting goalkeeper Max Leblond, who was serving an automatic suspension incurred from a red card in Friday's 1-1 draw against UQTR.
 
It also halted the team's three-game winless streak and marked the first regular season victory for new head coach Marc Mounicot, who has taken over the helm of the Redmen after 16 seasons behind the bench of the McGill women's program.
 
Di Ioia, a first-year physical education major who previously played parts of two seasons with the Montreal Impact, had given the Redmen a 1-0 lead in the eighth minute but the Stingers answered back minutes later with back-to-back goals from Jose Prida and Andrew Bryan in the 10th and 11th minutes, respectively.
 
Undaunted, Di Ioia turned it into overdrive, scoring three unanswered markers – in the 24^th, 28^th and 75^th minutes – past beleaguered Concordia 'keeper Remo Taraschi, who made six saves and took the loss.
 
Thomas Daechsel, a 5-foot-10 sophomore from Kingston, Ont., collected the victory in net for the Redmen, despite not being credited with any saves.
 
"We had a very good start over the first 10 minutes and then collapsed when Concordia scored two quick goals," said Mounicot. "We have a very young team and did not know how they would react to that kind of adversity. 

"You need something special to happen at moments like that and Di Ioia was that special element, scoring a natural hat-trick in the first half alone. He is one of the eight freshmen who started the game but has a pedigree with the Canadian national development program. He has a talented scoring touch and is lethal in the box. A four-goal game for one player is something that hasn't happened at McGill in a long, long time."

The result improved pushed McGill out of the cellar in the seven-team RSEQ conference, catapulting them into a fourth-place tie with Laval (1-1-1), ahead of Concordia (1-2) and Sherbrooke (1-3). A win next week could move them into second place.

"The rest of the team followed Di Ioia's lead and created many scoring chances tonight," added Mounicot. "We were overdue to score after three games where our ability to finish was not up to par. Combined with a tie against UQTR on Friday, this weekend was a very positive one for us, which will be good for team spirit. I expect that we will have an enthusiastic week of practice as we prepare for a key game against second-place UQAM." 

McGill will travel across town to confront the Citadins (2-1) on Sept. 22 at Centre sportif Bois-de-Boulogne. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
 

SOURCE:
 
Earl Zukerman
McGill Sports Info Office
514-398-7012


SCORING SUMMARY
Redmen 4, Concordia 2
(Molson Stadium)

FIRST HALF:
1. McGill, Massimo Di Ioia (Guillaume Sabourin), 8:00
2. Concordia, Jose Prida (Vincent Murray), 10:00
3. Concordia, Andrew Bryan (Massimo Tartaglia), 11:00
4. McGill, Massimo Di Ioia (unassisted), 24:00
5. McGill, Massimo Di Ioia (unassisted), 28:00

SECOND HALF:
6. McGill, Massimo Di Ioia (Alexander King), 75:00

GOALKEEPERS:
McGill:
Thomas Daechsel (W; 2 GA; 0 SAVES; 90:00)

CONCORDIA:
Remo Taraschi (L; 4 GA; 6 SAVES, 90:00)

 
CARDS:
McGILL (3 yellows):
Michael McIntyre (yellow, 25:00)
Clovis Fowo (yellow, 54:00)
Alexander King (yellow, 60:00)

CONCORDIA (3 yellows, 1 red):
Gabriel Quinn (yellow, 34:00)
Gabriel Quinn (yellow, 50:00)
Gabriel Quinn (red, 50:00)
Sam Tork (yellow, 56:00)
Stephen Meterissian (yellow, 90:00)


McGILL'S STARTING LINEUP:

GOAL: Thomas Daechsel
DEF.: Dominic Bell  (46:00)
DEF.: Clovis Fowo (60:00)
DEF.: Adam Dijkerman-Mounji
DEF.: Patick Fusarini
MID.: William Hoyle (55:00)
MID.:Alexandre De Santis
MID.: Michael McIntyre (60:00)
MID.:Guillaume Sabourin (46:00)
FOR.: Massimo Di Ioia
FOR.: Valentin Radevich (70:00)

SUBSTITUTIONS:
DEF.: Graham Kasper (replaced Bell at 46:00)
FOR.: Alexander King (replaced Sabourin at 46:00)
MID.: Thomas Swinkels (replaced Hoyle at 55:00)
FOR.: Jay Youn (replaced Fowo at 60:00)
DEF.: James Allester (replaced McIntyre at 60:00)
MID.: Sebastian Munro (replaced Radevich at 70:00)

DID NOT PLAY:
GOAL: Bladen Allen (dressed but DNP)
GOAL: Max Leblond (serving automatic suspension)
DEF.: Hassan Ali
DEF.: Alexis Leveille
DEF.: James Taylor
MID.: Marc Palaci-Olgun
MID.: Julien Marlatt
MID.: David Herrera-Rodriguez
MID.: Ian Richardson
FOR.:Mawuena Mallett (INJD)

SoccerMeter for iPad Game Data

McGill Redmen 1st Half Concordia 3 Goals 2 5 Shots On Goal 2 3 Missed Shot Attempts 4 62 % Shot Attempts On Goal 33 38 % Shot Attempts Scored 33 15:45 Time of Possession 12:01 57% Time of Possession % 43% 236 First Touches 183 13.1 Average Time of a Possession (sec) 9.9 164 Passes 110 69% Pass Completion % 60% 23 Number of Pass Strings 16 5.9 Average Pass String Length 4.2 21 Longest Pass String 8 2 Corner Kicks 3 8 Fouls Committed 7 0 Goalkeeper Saves 2 0 Goalkeeper Save % 40

McGill Redmen 2nd Half Concordia 1 Goals 0 6 Shots On Goal 2 3 Missed Shot Attempts 2 67 % Shot Attempts On Goal 50 11 % Shot Attempts Scored 0 14:49 Time of Possession 13:42 52% Time of Possession % 48% 219 First Touches 186 11.0 Average Time of a Possession (sec) 10.0 138 Passes 104 63% Pass Completion % 56% 18 Number of Pass Strings 15 5.0 Average Pass String Length 4.3 10 Longest Pass String 7 2 Corner Kicks 2 18 Fouls Committed 9 2 Goalkeeper Saves 5 100 Goalkeeper Save % 83

 

McGill Redmen	Game Total	Concordia
4	Goals	2
11	Shots On Goal	4
6	Missed Shot Attempts	6
65	% Shot Attempts On Goal	40
24	% Shot Attempts Scored	20
30:35	Time of Possession	25:44
54%	Time of Possession %	46%
455	First Touches	369
12.0	Average Time of a Possession (sec)	10.0
302	Passes	214
66%	Pass Completion %	58%
41	Number of Pass Strings	31
5.5	Average Pass String Length	4.3
21	Longest Pass String	8
4	Corner Kicks	5
26	Fouls Committed	16
2	Goalkeeper Saves	7
50	Goalkeeper Save %	64

Scoring Summary

McGill Redmen 4	Concordia 2
8' Massimo (5 pass buildup) 24' Massimo (0 pass buildup) 28' Massimo (3 pass buildup) 75' Massimo (2 pass buildup)	10' Number 20 (0 pass buildup) 11' Number 10 (2 pass buildup)

Cards

McGill Redmen	Concordia
25' Mikey (Yellow) 53' Clovis (Yellow) 60' King (Yellow)	34' Number 16 (Yellow) 50' Number 16 (Red) 50' Number 16 (Yellow) 56' Number 7 (Yellow) 91' Number 8 (Yellow)