TEANECK, N.J. - The Yeshiva University men's soccer team's strong start to the season continued on Sunday night, as the Maccabees were victorious in their Skyline opener over the Gryphons of Sarah Lawrence College, 3-0, at Votee Park. The Macs (2-0, 1-0 Skyline) had balanced scoring as six different players earned points. 

It was a big night for senior goalkeeper Benjamin Brener as he made six saves to earn a shutout victory in net. It marks the first win between the posts in his collegiate career.

Yeshiva had the better of the scoring opportunities by outshooting Sarah Lawrence (1-1, 0-1 Skyline), 19-13. The Maccabees also won the battle of shots on goal, 11-6. The Gryphons had seven corner kick opportunities, while the Maccabees had four.  

"Happy to start the conference with three points and a clean sheet," Yeshiva University Head Coach Tobias Esche said. "The first conference game is always tough because everyone knows it counts towards the record. We worked hard for the win and we move on to the next game. "

The Maccabees got off to a quick start, as junior Yonatan Reiter took a feed from classmate Rafael Cohen and buried what would be the eventual match-winning goal during the third minute to put YU up, 1-0. 

From that point on in the remainder in the half, the Gryphons' defense held YU to very few chances. Sarah Lawrence had a couple of corner kicks during the final minute of the opening period, but the Macs' defensive unit did not allow the opposition to cash in during that span. Rookie Kaeden Potts had a golden opportunity to tie the match with 15 ticks left on the clock, but was denied by a diving Brener which kept YU in front. The Blue and White took a 1-0 advantage into the intermission. 

Yeshiva once again struck early in a half, as junior Lucas Baredes passed the ball across to senior Ethan Fettaya who rifled it into the top right part of the net from 20 yards out to extend the home team's lead to 2-0, just over four minutes into the period. A little over 25 minutes later, junior Josh Ziarno headed a shot towards the goal but Gryphons' sophomore goalkeeper Kian Silva pushed the ball back towards the box. However, senior Jess Rom instantly gathered the rebound and lined the ball into the back of the cage to give Yeshiva an insurance goal, extending its advantage to 3-0 with just over 15 minutes left to play. 

That would be all YU needed as the Macs went on to win the conference opener and remain unbeaten to start the year.

For the Gryphons, Silva stopped eight shots.

Yeshiva will battle the defending Skyline Champions College of Mount Saint Vincent, in a rematch of its 2021 league semifinal matchup, on Friday at 12:00 p.m. The action will take place at the Purchase College Soccer Field.