Men’s Soccer Team Falls on the Road to Louisville, 3-1
By Jared Johnston
CitrusTV’s Men’s Soccer Beat Reporter
Men’s soccer had a chance to get back on the right foot with a win at Louisville this evening, but it wasn’t meant to be. Syracuse was aggressive for the entire match, but lapses in concentration hurt the most, giving the Cardinals a chance to close out the game for a 3-1 victory.
A key for the Orange to take away from their 3-1 loss to No. 1 Clemson last Sunday was to not concede early goals. In the 11th minute, Cardinal forward Nico Diaz slotted a shot past Russell Shealy, taking advantage of a disorganized SU defense. While head coach Ian McIntyre’s squad is characteristically a disciplined group, the story of the match was the final pass.
When the Orange were caught out, they faltered. In most categories though, SU was promising with their offensive output. Louisville and Syracuse equaled a tally of six shots on goal, but the Orange bested the Cards with 17 shot attempts and earned 11 corner kicks to Louisville’s two.
Chance creation was not a problem, with wing back Noah Singelmann surging across the field, and freshman Deandre Kerr bossing the Louisville defense around. There was nothing to show for it in the first half.
In the 32nd minute, Aboubacar Camara made a near post run to guide the ball with an in-step finish. The freshman put the Cardinals up 2-0 with his third goal of the season, a lead Louisville would hold to the end of the first half.
To start the second half, McIntyre had his team impose the press even further. With a high formation out of possession, the Cuse overloaded the sidelines to win back possession, and control the first ten minutes of play.
In the 76th minute, Deandre Kerr made an underlapping run speed into the left side of the goal box. After feeling contact, Kerr was pushed aside, earning a penalty. The Ontario senior Simon Triantafillou stepped up to the spot and forced his shot into the right-side netting.
Two minutes later, Kerr made a solo run past the Louisville defense to get a shot from the top of the box. The Ajax native fired a shot across his body which ricocheted back off the crossbar.
A key turn of events nearly had SU back tied at two within two minutes. But another lapse in concentration was killer. A turnover from Amferny Sinclair in his own defensive third gave Carlos Sanchis the chance to score the game-winning goal. Sanchis guided the ball perfectly into the top right corner past Shealy, and the result was set in stone.
The 3-1 loss sees SU fall to 1-6-3 on the season. Louisville on the other hand, improves to 3-6-1. The match really could have gone either way, but for McIntyre’s squad, it was the little mistakes that had the greatest impact.
The Orange is set to host North Carolina next Saturday at 2 p.m. Stay tuned to my Twitter handle for live updates from SU Soccer Stadium.
jjohns05@syr.edu | @jaredjohnstontv
