Seton Hall University
Providence
Men's Soccer Falters at Providence, Falling 3-1
9/28/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 28, 2013
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Seton Hall University men's soccer team allowed three second-half goals and dropped its BIG EAST Conference opener at Providence College, 3-1 on Saturday afternoon.
The Pirates (2-4-2, 0-1-0) led 1-0 when senior Max Garcia (Jersey City, N.J.) converted on a penalty kick in the 57th minute, but Providence (6-1-2, 1-0-0) took advantage of a Seton Hall defensive miscue to tie the game just six minutes later and permanently swing the momentum of the match.
A back and forth opening half saw Seton Hall close with several strong scoring chances, and after an uneven start to the second half the Pirates regained their edge, scoring a little over 11 minutes into the period.
Redshirt junior Victor Manosalvas (Clifton, N.J.) played a ball to junior Kai Greene (South Orange, N.J.) on the right side, just a few feet into the Providence goal box. Friar keeper Keasel Broome came out to make a play on the ball, but his idea quickly backfired as he was forced to take out inside of the box, resulting in the penalty kick opportunity for SHU.
Garcia attempted the shot for the Pirates, and buried his second goal of the season by beating Broome to the left side in the upper 90. It was Garcia's 16th-career goal and his fourth-career score off a PK. The attempt also snapped a three-game stretch without a score for Seton Hall.
Although statistically speaking the game appeared to be even up to that point, Seton Hall had generated more quality opportunities through the first 60 minutes, but that edge vanished as Providence capitalized on a defensive miscommunication to tie the game in the 63rd minute.
A seemingly harmless ball bounced into the SHU box and junior defender Mateusz Brela (Kielce, Poland) headed the ball back to freshman keeper Julian Spindler (Weiersbach, Germany). However, Spindler had come up to make a play and the result was a free ball that Providence forward Nick Sailor corralled and easily shot into an empty net.
Providence went on to finish the match with a 19-11 advantage in shot attempts thanks in large part to the effort exerted over the final 25 minutes of the game. Spindler finished with a career-high six saves in net for Seton Hall, including a couple of spectacular stops to maintain the tie score until the Friars broke through for the game winner in the 75th minute.
Thomas Ballenthin assisted on that goal for Providence, crossing from the left side out to Julian Gressel who beat Spindler low to give the Friars a 2-1 lead.
Seton Hall's best chance at knotting the score came with fewer than eight minutes to play as the Pirates took back-to-back corner kick attempts, only to see neither result in a shot on net. The first attempt sent in by freshman Samuel Geiler (Offenburg, Germany) created a bit of confusion for the Friars and Broome was forced to punch the ball out of play. The second attempt failed to find a teammate, but on the play junior Bolu Akinyode (Lagos, Nigeria) was whistled for a foul and presented a red card, leaving Seton Hall a man down for the remainder of the match.
That disadvantage prevented the Pirates from really forcing the issue on the offensive end. With time running out Seton Hall was caught by a Providence counter, and Dominik Machado finished on a Jimmy Petruccelli cross through the box to provide the Friars with an insurance goal.
Apart from the play leading up to Garcia's converted penalty kick, Seton Hall's strong offensive chances came late in the first half, and in both cases it was Garcia missing the net by the thinnest of margins. On the first sequence senior John Gurel (Istanbul, Turkey) crossed from the left side through the defense to Garcia, who slid toward the net and managed to get his right foot on the ball, only to see his deflection sail wide.
With halftime quickly approaching the Pirates manufactured their best chance yet, a play that started with quick passes from junior Alex Megna (Hales Corners, Wis.) to sophomore Eric Lagg (Lafayette, N.J.), who centered to Manosalvas. Manosalvas moved the ball out to Garcia, who streaked down the left side of the field just behind the defense. He fired a low shot toward the far post and missed the frame by less than a foot.
Seton Hall will return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 2, when it steps back out of conference play to face Rider University in Lawrenceville, N.J., at 7 p.m.
