In 2024, Cornell’s trip to No. 17 Denver was not what the Red had hoped. Cornell was almost endlessly penalized, alongside five second half man-up goals from Denver put the game out of reach for Cornell, for a 17-16 final score. The standout in the game was then-freshman attackman Willem Firth, who scored four goals.
This year, Cornell made the same trip, this time toppling the Pioneers, again led by Firth.
Cornell (2-0, 0-0 Ivy) started the game strong, scoring three straight in response to Denver (3-1, 0-0 Big East) opening the scoring. Cornell continued to pile on the highly-touted Denver defense, leading 6-3 at the end of the first quarter. Denver’s first two goals were scored by Rory Graham, former midfielder for The Red. Graham scored eight goals during his time at Cornell and was a member of last year’s championship team, before transferring last summer.
Cornell’s lead slipped away, with the Denver defense hunkering down, allowing for a five goal Pioneers scoring run to sandwich halftime.
After Denver scored to put the Red behind 7-9 in the fourth quarter, senior faceoff Jack Cascadden won the draw and successfully found the back of the net.
That would be the first of six straight faceoff wins down the stretch from Cascadden and sophomore faceoff Michael Melkonian. This allowed for a six goal Cornell run to close the game in the final quarter, with four of the goals coming right after a faceoff win.
Cornell walked away with a 13-9 win, showing poise down the stretch.
The offense put up an impressive performance against a fantastic Denver defense and goalie, scoring 13 even after being bottled up for the second and third quarters. Firth and sophomore attackman Ryan Goldstein each accumulated seven points with Firth collecting three goals and four assists, Goldstein two goals and five assists.
Alongside the standout duo was freshman Rowyn Nurry, scoring two goals while coming in to fill the spot of senior attackman Matt Perfetto, who was held scoreless against Albany. Also finding the scoresheet for the first time this season was junior midfielder AJ Nikolic, who scored after missing the Albany game with an injury.
Cornell’s faceoff room was the key to the win, winning every big faceoff down the stretch. Cascadden won 15 of 21 draws for a 71% clip. Melkonian also showed up big, winning four of five draws.
The Cornell defense held its own, with senior defender Matt Dooley also scoring a goal. Junior goalkeeper Matt Tully saved 10 of 19 shots against him, outdueling Denver’s Grayson Manning, who came into the game with a save percentage over 80%.
The Red will now fly home and quickly prepare to face Hobart in the home opener. Hobart is off to a 1-2 start this season, but the Red will need to stay focused, with a cold forecast and a two game week.
Cornell will face off against Hobart at 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Schoellkopf Field. Coverage will be available on ESPN+.
