Bjork’s Late Goal Helps Pirates to Third Straight Win

Friday, September 1

Bloomington, IN

5 PM

Seton Hall University

3-0-0, 0-0-0

Ohio State

0-2-1, 0-0-0

Seton Hall

Ohio St.

Bjork’s Late Goal Helps Pirates to Third Straight Win

9/2/2023 12:06:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Bloomington, Ind. - Sam Bjork (Huskvarna, Sweden) buried his first goal of the season in the 81st minute to guide the Pirates past Ohio State, 1-0, on Friday night. With the win, Seton Hall has its first 3-0 start to a season since 2008 and has shutout each of its first three opponents in a season for the first time since 2005.

Much of the match was ruled by defense, with only two shots threatening goaltenders on the night. Neither of those shots came during the first 45 minutes which saw Ohio State hold the edge in total shots, 4-3.

Out of the halftime break, Andrea Borg (Sliema, Malta) tallied the first shot on frame of the night in the 48th minute, but was turned away by Buckeyes goalkeeper Max Trejo. The two sides would continue to jockey for momentum until the 81st minute, when Bjork took a feed from Borg and fired one past Trejo to give the Pirates the 1-0 lead.

81' | GOOOOOAAAALLLLL

SAM BJORK! We lead 1-0 with less than 10 minutes left!#HALLin🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/HPKW4p8qOg
— Seton Hall Men's Soccer (@SHUMSOC) September 1, 2023

Ohio State would turn up the pressure in the late stages by firing a pair of shots in an attempt to level the score, but neither bothered Seton Hall netminder Mats Roorda (Groningen, Netherlands) as he and the Pirate defense posted their third straight clean sheet.

News & Notes

The Pirates have matched the program record of three consecutive shutouts to begin a season, also done by the 2005 squad.
Seton Hall is 3-0 to begin a season for the first time since 2008, when the team opened with a 4-0 mark.
Bjork's goal was the first of his career.
Hugo Gerbore (Moelan Sur Mer, France) got the start in his first career collegiate match, logging 59 minutes. Agustin Resch (Arata, Argentina) and Nico Rubio each also saw the pitch for the first time in their college careers, playing five and 16 minutes off the bench, respectively.

Up Next
The Pirates will remain in Bloomington over the weekend as they prepare to face No. 10 Indiana on Monday night at 8 p.m.