The Boston University men's soccer team split a pair of games against Big East opponents this weekend. On Friday, the Terriers defeated Seton Hall University 3-1 before falling 2-1 to No. 25 St. John's University on Sunday.
Seton Hall (1-2-1), a team BU (3-1-1) had never faced before in program history, took an early 1-0 lead on Friday with a free-kick goal from senior midfielder Brayan Martinez in the 14th minute. The Terriers answered about 13 minutes later, as junior forward Stephen Knox converted a pass from junior midfielder Ben Berube three yards from the net.
BU began the second half with a burst of energy, putting four shots on net in the first 10 minutes of the period. They eventually broke through 15 minutes into the half, when senior forward Aaron O'Neal scored his fourth goal of the season. Freshman midfielder Anthony Ciccone added to the Terrier lead at 64:24, taking a pass from senior midfielder Ben Havey and beating Pirate goalkeeper Sean Carr at a sharp angle. The goal was Ciccone's first of the season and of his collegiate career.
Redshirt freshman goalie Brandon Briggs, who is off to a strong start for BU, made five saves in the game, as did Carr. The two teams also matched up evenly on corner kicks, both managing nine but scoring on none, as BU instead found success on the offensive rushes it created.
However, that success didn't last long as the Terriers suffered their first loss of the season on Sunday against their first nationally ranked opponent St. John's (3-1-0).
The Red Storm struck first, taking the lead when forward Dom Sarle scored at 33:17 from close range. Ten minutes later, senior midfielder Ryan Shea provided the equalizer for the Terriers off of a corner kick with junior midfielder Michael Bustamante recording his first assist of the year on the goal. At the end of the first half, each team had attempted seven shots on goal despite the Terriers' 3-0 advantage in corners.
The tie only lasted seven minutes into the second half, as St. John's senior Tadeu Terra beat Briggs for his third goal of the season. Three minutes prior to the goal, BU freshman midfielder Derek McCaffrey had received a red card for an overly aggressive tackle, leaving the Terriers a man short.
BU increased the pressure on the Red Storm defense after the goal with both Bustamante and Knox putting shots on net in the next 10 minutes, but goalkeeper Rafael Diaz made the saves on both attempts and continued to shut BU down for the rest of the half. In the last four minutes of the game, Bustamante fired off three shots, two of which were on goal, but the junior couldn't solve the Red Storm keeper. Diaz ultimately made nine saves in the contest to Briggs's four.
Despite the loss, the Terriers can look at their 21-11 advantage in shots and their 6-1 edge in corner kicks as positives. They also doubled their shots from seven in the first half to 14 in the second, an indication that they can continue to threaten in close games until the final minutes.
Including a 1-0 loss to No.10 University of Connecticut in preseason play, the Terriers have lost a pair of one-goal games to ranked opponents this year. They will look to break that pattern against No. 5 Boston College on Friday.
<strong>Game Notes:</strong> Prior to Sunday, the Terriers had a four-game winning streak against Big East competition....St. John's regained the lead in its all-time series with BU, which now stands at 4-3....The last four games between the Terriers and the Red Storm have been decided by one goal.</p>
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