The No. RV/25 Hoyas (7-3-3, 2-2-3 BE) suffered an unexpected setback on Tuesday afternoon, falling to American University (5-5-2) 4-1.
Georgetown outshot the Eagles 10-6 in the first half and had the better of the chances, including a free-kick from junior defender Mark Zeman that struck the crossbar.
The Hoyas opened up scoring in the 53rd minute when junior midfielder Scott Larabee received a chip from sophomore midfielder Seth C’deBaca and slipped the ball past freshman goalkeeper Matt Makowski on the break away.
Things went sour for Georgetown in the 68th minute when American junior midfielder Cameron Petty was brought down in the box. Senior midfielder Phil Purdy converted the ensuing penalty kick to tie the game 1-1.
Hoya senior midfielder Hunter Joslin picked up a red card—one of nine cards given in the game—and American punished the undermanned Hoyas after the ejection, scoring three more goals before the final whistle.
“The red card obviously changed the game,” American head coach Todd West said. “But we took advantage of our opportunity and got a quality win over a ranked opponent.”
Redshirt freshman Mark Wilber recorded two saves, while Makowski stopped nine. Despite the lopsided loss, the Hoyas held a 17-13 advantage in shots and a 10-6 advantage in corner kicks.
The Hoyas return to conference play in Pittsburgh on Saturday, taking on the Panthers (6-4-2, 2-3-1 BE).
