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Photo via SHU Athletics[/caption]
The Seton Hall men’s soccer team suffered another defeat, this time at the hands of Big East rival Providence. The loss dropped the Pirates to a record of 3-9-1 and 1-4 in Big East play. The win pushed Providence above .500 in Big East play and to 8-5 overall. The game was a rough one for the Pirates, who finished the game with three yellow cards and one red card. The opening half saw Providence dominate possession for long stretches. The Friars constantly put pressure on Pirate goalkeeper Julian Spindler and scored off a Pirates turnover in the ninth minute. Spindler responded well however, and kept his defense organized while making five saves, three coming in the first half, to keep the Pirates in the game. Despite that, the Pirates routinely turned the ball over and had difficulty gaining possession. The Pirates only took four shots in the opening half to Providence’s 10.
The second half saw a complete change of pace for the Pirates. They were able to keep possession for long stretches and keep pressure off of their defense. Although they had more possession time, they had difficulty creating any convertible chances to tie the game. However, they battled on just as they have all season, building momentum to try and get that equalizer. Their closest chance came in the 73rd minute when substitute forward Jordan Kinoshi caught the Providence goalkeeper out of the net. Kinoshi shot the ball well, but a Friars’ defender slid in to make the save. The Pirates did not come that close to equalizing again.
The end of the game saw the referee struggle to keep the game intact as both teams made several physical plays. With the end of the game so close, the Pirates aggressively attacked and left themselves vulnerable to the Friars counterattack. A Friars’ attack in the 87th minute resulted in a skirmish in the box in which the referee unexpectedly gave Pirates’ defenseman Shawn Morrison a red card and awarded Providence a penalty kick. Spindler made the save, but the depleted Pirates side had lost all momentum by that point.
Seton Hall coach Gerson Echeverry was not happy with his team’s performance, but he did not think the calls affected the outcome of the game.
“I think [the referee] called some fouls both ways, some I agree with and some I disagreed with," Echeverry said. "I am not really sure what happened on the red card but it was unfortunate. Julian made the save, but we still lost and we lost one of our captain’s for next game.”
Echeverry made it clear that his team is capable, but just once again could not make the right plays.
“We make a mistake and we get punished for it, but we have not been able to punish the other team when they make a mistake and it is costing us.”
The Pirates will look to bounce back next Saturday, Oct. 22, when they travel to Indianapolis to play the Butler Bulldogs (8-3-1). The Pirates will look to respond and end their Big East schedule on a high note.
Andrew Lombardo can be reached at andrew.lombardo@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @Anlombardo8.
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