Leggett’s Equalizer Secures 1-1 Draw at Providence

Wednesday, October 19

Providence, R.I. (Chapey Field)

7 p.m.

St. John's University

4-6-4, 2-2-3BE

Providence

4-4-6, 2-2-4BE

St. John's

Providence

Wesley Leggett took one shot in 31 minutes of action against the Hoyas.

Leggett’s Equalizer Secures 1-1 Draw at Providence

10/19/2022 9:39:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Zenden Hart makes a season-high eight saves in the tie

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – After seeing his team fall behind on a Providence goal in the 58^th minute, Wesley Leggett delivered a magnificent equalizer in the 72^nd, pulling the Red Storm even and helping secure a 1-1 draw on Thursday night at Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium.

With the tie, the Red Storm (4-6-4, 2-2-3 BIG EAST) extended its unbeaten streak to four matches and remained inside the top six of the conference standings. Providence (4-4-6, 2-2-4 BIG EAST), which has played one more league match than the Johnnies, maintained its spot in fifth place. The top six teams in the final regular season standings will earn a spot in the BIG EAST Men's Soccer Championship, which begins on Nov. 5.

The Red Storm secured its fourth straight result despite being outshot, 17-3, including a 9-1 edge in shots on goal. Providence also held a 6-1 edge in corner kicks.

The reigning BIG EAST Freshman of the Week, Zenden Hart was sensational in goal once again for the Red Storm. The former Australian youth international logged a season-high eight saves, six of which came in the second half. Two stops came in the final 10 minutes of action after Leggett pulled the Johnnies even.

Leggett's goal, his third of the season, came off assists from Antek Sienkiel and Nigel Griffith. Both Sienkiel and Griffith have now tallied a helper in back-to-back matches.

St. John's controlled possession in the opening minutes of the contest before Providence dominated the middle portion of the stanza, registering the game's first six shots and logging a pair of solid scoring chances.

The Red Storm managed to manufacture a bit of momentum heading into the locker room, firing off two shots in the final eight minutes of the period.

Hart made two stops in the opening 10 minutes of the period, but was not able to keep Providence off the board for good. In the 58^th minute, Brendan McSorley sent a long ball into the box that found the head of Christopher Roman, who deflected it to an open Jason Pereira on the far side. Standing near the top of the six, the junior out of Bloomfield, N.J., beat Hart high to make it 1-0 in favor of the Friars.

In the minutes immediately following the Providence goal, Hart registered two more impressive stops, one on Pereira and one on Gil Santos, to keep the Red Storm within a goal.

Less than 15 minutes after falling behind, the Johnnies broke through. The sequence began with Sienkiel sending a ball out to Griffith on the left sideline 30 yards out from goal. Griffith quickly touched it back to Sienkiel near the top of the 18-yard box before the redshirt junior took a couple of steps and zipped a pass into Leggett. The senior took an initial touch with his right foot before unloading with his left, rocketing the ball into the top-left corner of the cage and evening the score at one apiece.

Hart provided some more late-game heroics to help secure the crucial BIG EAST point, making highlight-reel stops in the 82^nd and 88^th minutes.

The Red Storm will wrap its two-game road swing on Saturday when it travels to Butler for a 7 p.m. battle with the Bulldogs in Indianapolis. The match will be streamed live on the BIG EAST Digital Network, available on FloFC.