The Marquette’s men’s soccer team failed to capitalize on its recent form of play, falling to Big East Blue Division rival West Virginia 1-0 on Saturday at Valley Fields.
The Mountaineers extended their undefeated run against the Golden Eagles to 4-0-1 all time. The match was a frustrating display by Louis Bennett’s men, who were unable to take advantage of their scoring opportunities.
The team is now 2-5-2 overall, which is one more loss than they had this time last season. Their Big East record now sits at 1-2-2, better than last season by only one draw.
“I think we kind of shot ourselves in the foot a little bit,” Bennett said. “We didn’t create too many more opportunities with two strikers rather than one. They smothered us.”
To make matters worse, star strikers Calum Mallace and Anthony Colaizzi will be unavailable for Wednesday night’s clash against Big East powerhouse Notre Dame. Mallace picked up his fifth yellow card of the season, which means he will be suspended for the following game.
“A yellow’s a yellow,” Mallace said. “I’ll be out against Notre Dame, but I have faith in all the lads, and I know that we can get a victory against them, and I will be doing everything I can on the sidelines.”
Colaizzi was booked for the first time with 14 minutes left in the game after a hard challenge, but quickly picked up a second yellow four minutes later after arguing with the referee. The two yellows resulted in a red card and a suspension for the junior.
“It is frustrating,” Bennett said. “But we win as a team and we lose as a team.
“I think in those instances they lost their mind for a second and it didn’t work out. Neither of them wanted it to happen but it happened.”
Marquette dominated the possession throughout the game and controlled most of the play in the middle of the field. The Golden Eagles could not break through the Mountaineer defense, though, and recorded only two quality scoring chances.
The first chance came from an Andrew Krynski header, which barely tipped off the goalkeeper’s fingertips, and the other was from Mallace, who dipped the ball from 30 yards out only to have it ricochet off the sidebar.
“I thought in the first half we played great, actually,” Krynski said. “In the second half we played down the middle too much, so that kind of hurt us.”
The Mountaineers took advantage of the Golden Eagles’ squandered chances and scored in the 73rd minute after the Marquette defense failed to clear the ball from the box.
“I think they had a little more staying power,” Bennett said. “They stayed in it. We got a little anxious and pressed too much … I think the biggest thing is not what we don’t have, it’s what we have. Is it difficult? Any team who plays without two experienced players — it’s a challenge.”
