By: Dylan Fearon
It’s starting to click for Rashawn Dally, and it’s coming at the best possible time.
The junior forward scored twice in the first half Wednesday and again in the second as the Quinnipiac men’s soccer team defeated Saint Peter’s 4-1 in the regular season finale.
Dally’s goals were only his third, fourth and fifth of what has been an inconsistent year. But all five of his goals have come in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play, and he’s scored four goals in the last three games to end the regular season.
Near-perfect timing heading into the MAAC Tournament.
“It’s very important for me,” Dally said. “At the beginning of the season, a lot of things didn’t go my way. But I always believe in myself and my teammates and I think this is a good time for it to happen, going into the playoffs and build some momentum.”
“It’s really important,” Quinnipiac head coach Eric Da Costa said. “He’s been working hard all year. He’s been creating chances all year for himself and getting good service from guys. So for him to put those, especially the first two difficult ones, away is good for him and hopefully it helps his confidence moving into more important games.”
Dally’s first goal came less than two minutes into the game. Senior Matthew Taylor was a few steps outside the 18-yard box and crossed onto goal. A running Dally sped past the last line of defense and had just the keeper to beat. After letting the ball bounce once near the penalty spot, Dally flicked the ball over Saint Peter’s goalkeeper Robbie Anderson and into the back of the net.
That was quick. Just 1:14 into this one, Rashawn Dally slips one by the keeper 3 yards away off a nice cross into the box from Matt Taylor
— Dylan Fearon (@DylanFearon_) November 1, 2017
It was the start Quinnipiac needed with MAAC Tournament seedings on the line.
“I thought he was really composed at how he put that away,” Da Costa said. “He’s had similar chances all year and they just haven’t quite bounced for him. He was composed and focused on getting that last touch in over the line.”
It didn’t take Dally long to get his second. 17 minutes in, he pressured Anderson in the box, stole the ball and fired a shot in the bottom left corner.
The junior forward finished with ease.
“If you pressure the defense and believe in the play,” Dally said. “Don’t give up on the play, you might get a ball to bounce your way. Once you do that, you just got have to put it away.”
Saint Peter’s shrunk Quinnipiac’s lead in half right before halftime on a defensive miscue by the Bobcats. But Quinnipiac controlled possession and pace all day long, and Max Rothenbuecher and Dally added insurance goals in a game it needed to win to have a shot at a home match in the MAAC Tournament quarterfinals.
“(My confidence) is pretty high, but I also don’t want it to get too high or too low at it times like this,” Dally said. “I want to stay leveled and just make sure I keep doing the right things that add up to the goal.”
This is what the MAAC standings looked like heading into Wednesday’s matches. The highest Quinnipiac can finish is fourth, the lowest fifth. The top six teams make the tournament.
Fortunately for Quinnipiac, Canisius and Manhattan play each other Wednesday afternoon.
With Quinnipiac now at 18 points, and owning the head-to-head tiebreaker on both Canisius and Manhattan, the Bobcats need that game to not end in a draw. If it does, both Canisius and Manhattan would end the season at 19 points. If one team wins, then the winner would have 21 and the loser 18, propelling Quinnipiac above the loser with the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Quinnipiac took care of what it could control, but has to wait until the Canisius-Manhattan match ends to know where and who its playing in the quarterfinals this weekend.
