Box Score

Ewing, NJ … The College of New Jersey men's soccer team defeated Richard Stockton College 2-0 in the opening round of the New Jersey Athletic Conference championship tournament on Saturday afternoon in TCNJ's Soccer Complex.

The Lions (12-5-2) now advance to the semi-final round match at top-seeded Rutgers University-Camden on Wednesday at 6 p.m.

Freshman Nick Costelloe (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Twp) and senior Kevin Shaw (Brookside, NJ/West Morris Mendham) each scored goals, while senior Aaron Utman (Hopewell, NJ/Hopewell Valley) registered the shutout.

TCNJ and Richard Stockton were scoreless through the opening 45 minutes of play. At the 68:29 mark, Costelloe blasted a shot that deflected off a defender and found the back of the net to give the Lions a 1-0 advantage. It was the fifth goal of the season for Costelloe.

Just over seven minutes later, Shaw put the game away with his 20^th tally of the season. Sophomore Greg Kaye (Morganville, NJ/Marlboro) found the senior forward streaking down the right sideline and fed him a pass from midfield. Shaw collected the pass and chipped a shot over the head of goalkeeper Bobby Varga with 14:28 to play.

Utman finished with five saves for his third shutout of the season. The Lions outshot the Ospreys 17-13 as Varga stopped seven shots in the game.

Earlier this season, TCNJ and Rutgers-Camden battled to a 1-1 tie in Lions. Stadium. The Scarlet Raptors are currently ranked third nationally in the National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) poll.