WATERLOO, Ont. - The Golden Hawks men's soccer team showed determination and heart on Sunday afternoon, battling back from an early deficit to earn a 3–3 draw against the Algoma Thunderbirds in their final regular-season home match at Ansley Alumni Field.
 
The match also served as Senior Day, as the Golden Hawks recognized eight graduating players, Sam Ghouli, Tristan Greenidge, Luigi Bello, Matthew Andree, Joseph Carabetta, Luke Ewen, Leo Takahashi, and Div Sandhu, for their commitment and leadership throughout their Laurier careers.
 
Laurier opened the match with intensity, pressing high and controlling possession in the early minutes.

Senior Joseph Carabetta stood out with confident touches and creative movement, while Arjan Khela made several dangerous runs from the backline.

Midfielder Sam Ghouli came close to opening the scoring with a decisive strike from distance. Still, it was Algoma who capitalized, scoring twice in the first half in the 17th minute through Theo Hampton and again in the 34th via Christopher Olungwe to take a 2–0 lead into halftime.
 
Despite the setback, the Hawks' energy never faded. Laurier came out for the second half with renewed urgency, dominating possession and dictating play.

The breakthrough came in the 65th minute when senior Luigi Bello buried a penalty kick to cut the deficit to 2–1, shifting momentum back in Laurier's favour.
 
"We just picked it up in the second half, down two goals," said Bello. "The momentum came our way after the penalty."
 
The Hawks continued to press and were rewarded in the late stages. In the 88th minute, Maksym Telishchuk equalized off a setup from Carabetta, and less than a minute later, Carabetta found the back of the net himself from Kourosh Jamshidi's assist to give Laurier a dramatic 3–2 lead.

However, in stoppage time, Algoma converted a penalty to level the match 3–3.
 
Despite the result, the performance reflected the group's fight, maturity, and connection something Laurier head coach Mario Halapir emphasized after the match.
 
"We got a point out of the game when we were down 2–nil, and at the end of the day, that's the most promising part of it," said Halapir. "This is a special group. The guys graduating are the ones who helped rebuild this program and made us competitive again. We're very proud of their contribution."
 
Senior Joseph Carabetta, who tallied a goal and an assist in the comeback, reflected on the emotion of his final home match.

"I've been in this program for four years and have loved every year," said Carabetta. "It's been special working with the guys, with Mario, with the coaching staff. I'm really going to miss playing here. All four years have been incredible, and I'm happy I can call this place home."
 
The Golden Hawks will now close out their regular season on the road as they continue their push toward locking down an OUA playoff spot, as they currently hold the sixth and final spot by just three points over Algoma, who have an extra game in-hand to Laurier's one.

Up Next:
The Golden Hawks (3-5-3) take on the Guelph Gryphons (4-3-4) at Guelph Soccer Complex on Friday October 10 to wrap up the regular season. Kick-off is at 8:15 pm.

Fans can also follow @WLUAthletics on X for live updates.