The Boston University men’s soccer team hoped to keep its playoff chances alive, but saw them slip away after a 2-1 loss to the University of Hartford last night at Nickerson Field.
The Terriers (7-6-3, 2-3-1 America East) dominated play throughout regulation, but could not put the ball in the net as the Hawks (6-10-0, 4-3-0 America East) notched the game winner halfway through the second half to seal the win.
Hawk forward Asaf Lubezky put Hartford up early, as he received the ball from his brother, forward Alon Lubezky, and slammed a shot past senior goalkeeper Matt Smith at 8:45 to put Hartford ahead, 1-0. Despite the early goal, the Terriers remained aggressive and kept pushing the ball forward, ripping shots at Hawk goalkeeper Ryan Carr.
BU had a number of quality chances in front of the net during the second half of action. On more than one occasion, junior midfielder Andy Dorman received the ball at the top of the box, pushed it past a Hawk defender, and fired a hard shot right into the hands of Carr.
Toward the end of the first half, Dorman sprinted down the right side and into the Hartford box. He was then taken down by Carr in the box and drew a foul to give the Terriers a chance at a penalty kick. Freshman midfielder Jamie Johnson did not waste the free chance, and put BU on the board when he slipped a perfectly placed shot past Carr at 30:55 to make the score 1-1 heading into the half.
The Terriers continued their feisty play throughout the second half, and it looked as though they would soon capitalize one of numerous Hawk mistakes, as Hartford continued to miss plays and mishit balls in their defensive end, leaving chances for the Terriers. Unfortunately, the Terriers were unable to finish any of those opportunities.
The game-winning goal for Hartford came in the 79th minute. Forward Easton Wilson received the ball at the top of the Terrier box and was left unmarked as the Terriers waited for an offside call that never came. Wilson made a quick move past Smith and sent the ball swiftly into the back of the net past the scrambling goalie to put the Hawks up 2-1 and seal the game.
While both coaches seemed visibly upset with the officiating throughout the match, the most controversial play came in the closing seconds. With six seconds left and Smith playing all the way up at midfield, the game seemed over. But Smith received a throw-in and lobbed it into the Hartford box with three seconds left. Junior forward Alan McNamara found himself standing with the ball at his feet as the whistle blew. The only problem was that McNamara was standing inside the goal. While BU players screamed at the officials, the whistle sounded, and no goal was declared as the Terriers saw their chances of an America East tournament berth slip away.
BU players lay on the field after the match, distraught to see their tournament hopes come to an end. While BU had trouble getting on the board, the team outshot the Hawks, 10-3. Carr had a solid game in net for Hartford, tallying eight saves. Six of those saves came in the second half of play, during BU’s most dominating play.
The Terriers have been mathematically eliminated from tournament action, but two games remain in their regular season schedule. They next face first-place University of Vermont on Sunday at Nickerson Field, and close their season next week at the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
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