2008 Woodie Awards
RSSNo room for error after Hawks' 2-0 loss
By Nicole Falcone
Issue date: 10/23/07 Section: Sports
A playoff berth for the men's soccer team slipped further out of reach on Saturday with a 2-0 loss to the American University Eagles in Washington D.C.
With the loss the Hawks fell to 1-3 in the Patriot League, and the Eagles continue their reign in first place at 3-0-1.
The game's fate was determined within a 50-second-streak midway through the first half. The Eagles were awarded a penalty kick after junior defender Vincent Devine took down Eagles' junior forward Anthony Moy in the box. Junior midfielder Philip Purdy took the shot for the Eagles, capitalizing to put them up 1-0.
Thirty-nine seconds later, the Hawks deflated defense let up a second goal when sophomore midfielder Jake Van Yahres dissected his defender one-on-one and ripped a shot into the lower left corner past Hawks' freshman goalie Jon Nidell.
"When they scored the penalty kick it took the wind out of us," senior defender and co-captain Mike Hessemer said. "We were on a roll right there. We had the ball, we had some shots, and then they scored the penalty kick. It hit us mentally. We didn't get over it in time. It was still on our minds and they just ran at us again."
The Hawks spent the rest of the game trying to come back, but the team's inability to capitalize left the Hawks on the losing end. The team took 25 shots compared to the Eagles' six.
"The midfield is possessing the ball well and we are moving the ball well," Hessemer said. "I just think there's still a tendency to dump the ball into the forwards rather than everyone getting involved."
The Hawks have relied heavily on forwards sophomore Kyle Evans and junior Jimmy Taranto to lead the offense. Evans' has scored nine out of the team's 17 goals, while Taranto has three goals and five assists. The midfield has yet to score a goal all season.
"It's clear that the team relies on Jimmy and Kyle to both create and finish," Head Coach Dean Koski said. "That's been both our strength and our Achilles heel. To the credit of the rest of our team we have got to score goals, every midfielder and every forward. [Saturday] the guys were terribly frustrated and we were terribly frustrated, but that's soccer. We are not out of anything yet, if we can create 25 shots off American and have more people contribute."
With the loss the Hawks fell to 1-3 in the Patriot League, and the Eagles continue their reign in first place at 3-0-1.
The game's fate was determined within a 50-second-streak midway through the first half. The Eagles were awarded a penalty kick after junior defender Vincent Devine took down Eagles' junior forward Anthony Moy in the box. Junior midfielder Philip Purdy took the shot for the Eagles, capitalizing to put them up 1-0.
Thirty-nine seconds later, the Hawks deflated defense let up a second goal when sophomore midfielder Jake Van Yahres dissected his defender one-on-one and ripped a shot into the lower left corner past Hawks' freshman goalie Jon Nidell.
"When they scored the penalty kick it took the wind out of us," senior defender and co-captain Mike Hessemer said. "We were on a roll right there. We had the ball, we had some shots, and then they scored the penalty kick. It hit us mentally. We didn't get over it in time. It was still on our minds and they just ran at us again."
The Hawks spent the rest of the game trying to come back, but the team's inability to capitalize left the Hawks on the losing end. The team took 25 shots compared to the Eagles' six.
"The midfield is possessing the ball well and we are moving the ball well," Hessemer said. "I just think there's still a tendency to dump the ball into the forwards rather than everyone getting involved."
The Hawks have relied heavily on forwards sophomore Kyle Evans and junior Jimmy Taranto to lead the offense. Evans' has scored nine out of the team's 17 goals, while Taranto has three goals and five assists. The midfield has yet to score a goal all season.
"It's clear that the team relies on Jimmy and Kyle to both create and finish," Head Coach Dean Koski said. "That's been both our strength and our Achilles heel. To the credit of the rest of our team we have got to score goals, every midfielder and every forward. [Saturday] the guys were terribly frustrated and we were terribly frustrated, but that's soccer. We are not out of anything yet, if we can create 25 shots off American and have more people contribute."
