2001 CUNYAC Soccer Championship

York Wins on Penalty Kicks

Ridgewood, NY - York senior Chimela Okoro proved to be the unlikely hero once again as the sweeper scored the deciding penalty kick to give York a 0-0 [4-3 penalty kicks] win over City College in the final of 2001 CUNY Athletic Conference / Brine Men's Soccer Championship. Last year, Okoro netted a golden goal winner, this time he slotted home the 5th and deciding penalty kick to give the Cardinals their second straight CUNY title. The outcome and the automatic NCAA berth that comes with the win could not be decided after 120 scoreless minutes at Ridgewood's Metropolitan Oval.

"This is my last chance to play collegiate soccer, which has always been my dream, so I treasured the opportunity to take the last shot," said Okoro, a native of Lagos, Nigeria, who now lives in Laurelton, NY. "He [CCNY keeper Roger Cyrus] moved to one side and I took the opening to hit the winner."

After both teams got on board in the first round, York sophomore goalkeeper Stephane Koutouo (Jamaica, NY) made a crucial save on Gary Byrne (New York, NY) on the second attempt, diving to his left and making a great one-handed save that proved to be the difference in the end. After CCNY's Darwin Salgado (Brooklyn, NY) missed wide right, York's Alex Hall (Ozone Park, NY) sailed his shot over the crossbar, setting up Okoro for his heroic finish.

City College (13-3-1), a dominating team in CUNYAC play over the past two seasons, failed to convert a number of good scoring opportunities, losing the school's bid to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1958. The soccer history-rich Beavers haven't won a CUNY title since 1993.

"That's the way it is, if you don't score any goals you can't win," said Helman, clearly the most dangerous offensive player on the day for the Beavers. "I obviously don't like that we didn't win, but we played a good game."

The Beavers had more goal chances during the contest, but both goalkeepers were sharp. Koutouo (Jamaica, NY), the Cardinals captain, had 12 saves, while Cyrus (Brooklyn, NY) had 10 stops for CCNY. York's best chances came on set plays with Okoro going forward to head several dangerous shots toward Cyrus' net.

Although CCNY controlled the second half ball possession, they didn't seriously threaten until overtime. Nine minutes into the first overtime period Beavers' rookie Santiago Helman missed a golden opportunity when Okoro slipped clearing the ball, giving Helman an open shot from eight yards out but it missed just wide of the upper right corner. Eight minutes later CCNY junior Darwin Salgado (Brooklyn, NY) hit the side-netting from 15 yards away.

The selections for the NCAA Championships, which begin on Wednesday, will be announced early Sunday evening.

"This year there's no excuse not to win a game in the NCAA's," said Koutouo, who played an excellent game in last year's 2-0 NCAA loss at Kings Point. "We are a more complete team than we were last year and although we are a bit banged up we are ready."

CCNY 3 - York 4
Penalty Kick Scorers: Koutou, Keita, Jean-Pierre, Okoro (York); Uweche, Helman, Galan (CCNY).