Syracuse Men's Soccer Ties Louisville in ACC Opener

By Ellen Burr

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Syracuse Men’s Soccer (3-1-1) remains winless since 2008 against Louisville (3-1-1) after a double-overtime deadlock between the former Big East Conference rivals at SU Soccer Stadium Friday night. The night became increasingly chilly as a crowd of 2,237 came to watch the Orange kick off ACC play with a physical game against the Cardinals.

            
“I thought this was a grind,” SU Coach Ian McIntyre said. “This was a battle of an ACC conference game. We were taking on a very good Louisville team.  They’re fluid, they’re dynamic. I think both teams kind of cancelled each other out a lot tonight. It was two honest teams kind of going hammer and nail out there.”

         
The Orange took the lead early on, with a goal by junior defensive midfield Oyvind Alseth in the eighth minute.  Sophomore midfield Julian Buescher assisted.

            
“Obviously it always feels good to score goals,” Alseth said. “I don’t know, it’s kind of a bittersweet feeling right now. I feel like the goal doesn’t really matter much.”

The Orange had seven shots on goal to the Cardinals' four. But Louisville’s aggressive style of play proved to be a tough test for the Orange’s defense.

Syracuse’s defense weathered the challenge, except for a critical defensive lapse late in the first half when Louisville junior midfielder Daniel Johnson found the back of the net in the 43^rd minute off a corner kick by sophomore defensive midfield Tim Kubel.

“From a defensive standpoint we felt like we had a solid game,” Orange defenseman Louis Cross said. “It would have been better if we got the shutout. We let some unfortunate goal come through. It was quite sloppy.”

Despite the Orange’s obvious disappointment after the game, McIntyre said there are positives to take away from Louisville’s elevated level of play.

           
 “I’m very proud,” McIntyre said. “You can’t replicate these kinds of games in practice. We’ve got a lot of new faces. You can’t explain to a new guy what an ACC conference game is. It’s an absolute war, it’s a battle, all the old clichés. Our guys will benefit, will be a better team because of tonight.”

Next

Syracuse continues ACC play next at Wake Forest. The game is scheduled for Sept. 19 at 7 p.m.