The University’s men’s soccer team improved their record to 3-1-0 this past Saturday with a 2-0 win over the Holy Cross Crusaders who now post a 0-2-1 record.
The Hawks capitalized the second half as senior Dom Sarle put the blue and white on the board in the 61st minute of play while senior Bryant Avalos furthered the score in the 81st minute. Eric Klenofsky recorded his second shutout of the season.
“Our defense played very well overall, but we did a great job possessing the ball, and as a result, we were able to keep the ball away from our end of the field which really helped limit their opportunities,” Head Coach Robert McCourt said. “By possessing and keeping control of the ball well, we forced their defense to step up and get out of posture which gave us a lot of chances on the offensive end.”
The Hawks dominated their opponent in the first half as they outshot Holy Cross, 5-0. MU applied the pressure around the 20th minute of first half play. Within a three minute span, the Hawks had four shots on goal and two corners kicks.
“Not every chance turns into a goal,” McCourt said of the many opportunities his team had. “We may not have registered too many shots on goal, but we had a lot of crosses into good positions. It’s nice to score goals, but I was happy overall with how we played offensively.”
Four minutes into the second half, the Hawks already had a corner kick and a shot on goal. The Crusaders bounced back as they took three corner kicks in a five minute span. Junior captain David Acuna-Camacho was handed a yellow card in the 58th minute of play; however, this only built the Hawks’ momentum.
With 60 minutes on the board, Sarle was able to find the net and give his team the advantage. Sarle currently leads the Hawks with three goals for the season.
Around 20 minutes into the second half, MU’s offense was on the frontline. Junior Dan Pizzimenti began the charge with a shot on net at 65:18. At 67:28, Acuna-Camacho sent in a corner kick followed by a shot from Sarle. Unfortunately for the Hawks, the Crusaders’ goalkeeper was able to find the ball.
MU’s persistence did not waiver and at 68:29, junior Derek Luke tallied another corner kick. Two minutes later, Acuna-Camacho accounted for the blue and white’s seventh corner kick on the night.
Holy Cross powered back with a shot by defender Diego Ceron; the crossbar provided MU with the save.
Shortly following, MU sophomore Dave Nigro was given a yellow card while MU as a team was given a red card one minute later.
Once again, the Hawks’ gained momentum from the cards and got off a shot on net within the minute. With 10 minutes left to play, Luke took MU’s eighth corner kick of the game.
Thirty seconds later, Acuna-Camacho took a corner kick from the opposite side. Avalos was able to place the ball in the net providing the Hawks’ second and final goal of the game. The goal was Avalos’ second of the season and Acuna-Camacho’s first assist.
The team will embark on a three game journey starting with Rutgers in Piscataway, NJ; Villanova in Villanova, PA; and Seton Hall in South Orange, NJ.
“It’s always difficult playing on the road in college soccer, and the fact that we’re playing some local rivals makes it even more of a challenge. These schools recruit a lot of the same guys we do and all of the players know each other pretty well so it adds another dimension to the game. Ultimately, we want to go out there and keep playing well and do whatever we have too to pick up some wins,” McCourt said.
The Hawks will return to The Great Lawn on Tuesday, Sept. 30 to play in their first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game of the season against Canisius College.
