PURCHASE, N.Y. - A first half goal by Vana Markarian helped the Columbia men's soccer team get by Central Connecticut State, 1-0, in a muggy match at Manhattanville College. With the win, the Lions improve to 2-1 on the season.

Columbia drew a first half corner kick in the 19th minute, as newcomer Nike Azuma went down to the right corner to set up the play. Markarian headed home the Azuma pass, giving both players their first career point in the process.

A few minutes later, the teams took a brief water break, as temperatures on the field were over 90 degrees throughout the contest.

"Today there were conditions that pushed both teams to an uncomfortable place," said head coach Kevin Anderson. "I felt we handled the conditions fairly well, and we will look to continue to grow minute by minute in all aspects of our team development. In the end, the team is the most important ingredient we have."

The first half's best look on net for the Blue Devils came in 42nd minute, as a header from Sebastian Calderon was denied by Zachary Adler, sending the teams into the intermission with the Lions holding a 1-0 lead.

CCSU tried to counter the heat with a mass substitution at three different points in the second, bringing in six new players in the 54th minute, six more in the 64th, and three subs in the 73rd minute. Despite this, the Lions back line was able to hold strong, making all the looks at net tough for the Blue Devils to execute.

Columbia had two looks late in the contest that just missed, as Rhys Williams sent a header wide off of a John Denis corner in the 86th minute, and Kynan Rocks pulled a shot just left of the post after being freed up with a nice look on the right.

Adler was poised again in net, posting his second shutout in three games while finishing the match with six saves.

Up next, Columbia will head to Monmouth on Wednesday for a non-conference match on ESPN3 at 7 p.m.