The Georgetown men’s soccer (9-3-1, 2-1-1 Big East) team hit a bump in the road Saturday in Cincinnati when they were defeated 2-1 by the Xavier Musketeers (6-5-2, 2-2-0 Big East). This loss was the first in nine games, and marked the third game of the season in which the Hoyas did not shut out their opponent.
The game was somewhat of an experiment for Georgetown Head Coach Wiese, even though he seemed to have found his preferred formation for competitive play in a four-man defensive line, opting to start the match in a 3-4-3 formation with sophomore defender Cole Seiler, senior midfielder Joey Dillon, and freshman midfielder Jared Odenbeck as his three center backs. Bakie Goodman returned to the lineup after having made the Big East honor roll for his performance and goal last Wedneday against No. 25 Providence.
Even though the Hoyas lost, they were the first on the board. In the 31st minute, sophomore forward Brandon Allen barreled past three defenders, scooped the ball up, and slotted it past Xavier keeper Eric Osswald to get the Blue and Gray on the scoreboard. Sadly, this would be the last time the Hoyas found the net in what proved to be a frustrating offensive performance.
Both teams were locked in a stalemate until the 45th minute of the first half when Xavier midfielder Garrett Halfhill sent a long pass to junior midfielder Will Walker, who in turn rounded Georgetown goalkeeper, junior Tomas Gomez, with one touch and leveled the scores just before the break.
Fortunes didn’t improve much for Georgetown as they were outplayed during much of the second half. Xavier outshot the Hoyas 7-1 over the course of the last 45 minutes of the game. The shot that proved fatal to Georgetown’s hopes for the game came in the 74th minute when Walker buried the ball in the back of the net after a series of quick passes.
Georgetown had one final chance on net before the game was over. Junior midfielder Tyler Rudy launched a shot towards the Xavier goal. Osswald was equal to the effort and Georgetown fell 2-1.
After a resounding 8-0 win against the Seton Hall Pirates, offensive production seemed to be on the rise for the Hoyas. Some would say this match indicated otherwise, but, as he has all season, Georgetown Head Coach Brian Wiese indicated that sometimes these things happen.
“Tonight was a tough one. After [Allen] scored a great goal, they got a lucky one just before the half, which really changed the complexion of the game. Credit to Xavier; they played a great game and handled some things that we didn’t,” said Wiese.
With this loss, Georgetown falls to a record of 9-3-1 overall and a mixed record of 2-1-1 in Big East conference play. Georgetown hasn’t played a midweek game due to entering a bye week, but will return to action against Butler University on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Shaw Field. With many tough Big East opponents on the horizon such as No. 11 Marquette and No. 43 St. John’s, the Hoyas will be looking to improve their fortunes and performance.
