Ryan Raposo’s Hat Trick Leads Men’s Soccer to 4-3 Comeback Win
By Nick Kuzma
Citrus TV Men’s Soccer Beat Reporter
Chapel Hill, N.C.- The Syracuse Men’s Soccer team came out like a team possessed at the UNC Soccer Stadium. The Orange were on the board less than one minute into their contest with No. 18 UNC, thanks to a goal from midfielder Ryan Raposo.
The Tar Heels then started to pour it on, and SU’s chances at winning their first match against an ACC opponent were dwindling. However, Raposo put the team on his back in second half and turned what would have been a 3-1 loss into a 4-3 upset victory for Syracuse (4-3-4, 1-2-2 Atlantic Coast) over 18th-ranked North Carolina (7-3-2, 3-2 Atlantic Coast).
UNC first tied the game up at one in the 15th minute with Alex Rose scoring his sixth goal of the season. The Tar Heels then got a goal from Jonathan Jimenez in the 33rd minute, and a costly Syracuse foul in the box set up a penalty kick for UNC’s Santiago Herrera. The junior put the ball past SU Goalkeeper Christian Miesch to go up 3-1 with 34 minutes left in the match.
Raposo struck again in the 71st minute to make it 3-2, and three minutes later, the sophomore lined up for a free kick. He put the ball in the box, where SU defender Sondre Norheim was able to head the ball into the back of the net.
All of a sudden, the game was tied.
Raposo, as the man of the match, made sure the Orange were going home happy, scoring his third goal of the game off a UNC turnover to give the Cuse a 4-3 lead in the 88th minute.
In a series of firsts, this was Raposo’s first career hat trick, the first ACC victory of the season for the Orange, and Syracuse’s first victory against a ranked opponent in 2019.
Next up, the Orange will try and build off this signature win when Syracuse returns home on Tuesday for their final regular season non-conference game of the year.
The Orange hosts Connecticut (3-7-1, 0-2 Big East) 7:00 p.m. at SU Soccer Stadium.
npkuzma@syr.edu | @nkuz71
