Northern Kentucky University Athletics

Box Score

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Northern Kentucky University men's soccer team played Marshall to a 1-1 draw on Sunday. The Norse defense was able to hang on and secure the result, marking the third tie for the Norse this season.
 
The Norse commanded a lot of the possession in the beginning of the first half. Possession is always important, but the Norse were struggling to turn that possession into chances. The first crack at goal came in the 15th minute when Gavin Colton sent a ball in the box off a free kick, finding the head of Nicholas Chiarot. Chiarot got plenty of power on the header but couldn't direct the ball on target as it went wide.
 
The Norse midfielders continued controlling the ball and a well-placed over the top ball from Brendan Murphy found Mohammed Salhieh in box but the Thundering Heard defenders cleared the ball out for a corner. Murphy took the corner for the Norse and Ian O'Reilly flicked the ball on toward Salhieh, who headed it into the back of the net from just inside the six-yard box. The Norse celebrated taking the 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute.
 
Marshall began to find their rhythm after conceding and the Thundering Heard began to crank up the pressure on A.J. Fleak. No more than three minutes after the Norse scored, Nick Edginton took the ball in on goal for Marshall but O'Reilly blocked the shot out of bounds, conceding a corner. Five minutes later, O'Reilly made a defensive error that gave Marshall's Ian Lovern a one-on-one opportunity with Fleak. He blasted a shot low and away but Fleak was able to stretch out and make the save, keeping the Norse in front. Fleak would be called to action to save a long-range attempt from Zach Hunter just before halftime. The Norse would take the lead into half for the second game in a row.
 
"The first half we were a little dysfunctional," said head coach John Basalyga. "Even though we scored a goal we couldn't connect passes. We just didn't flow well."
 
The Norse stuck to their gameplan from the first half and continued to dominate possession in the midfield. The Thundering Heard struggled to get any offensive production as the Norse back-four stayed firm. O'Reilly was able to clear any ball sent his way off the line. He made a dangerous challenge on a through ball inside the Norse penalty area that resulted in a loose ball that Chiarot cleared away.
 
There were some scary moments late in the game for the Norse defense. Marshall had a corner kick in the 73rd-minute that connected with Ian Lovern. Lovern was wide open on the far post but couldn't keep his shot down as it sailed over the crossbar. Moments later the Thundering Heard netted the equalizer as a cross from Jahvon Allison found the head of Edginton for the goal. Fleak looked on helplessly as the header flew into the upper ninety, well out of his reach.
 
Nick McGregor had a couple chances to seal a win for the Norse in the final minutes of regulation. He had a free kick opportunity on the edge of the box but he couldn't quite get enough power on the ball as it failed to trouble the keeper. The clock expired and the Norse were headed for overtime for the fifth time this season.
 
"I thought we played pretty well," said Basalyga. "We were more functional, but we lacked composure in front of goal. That's been a problem for us all year."
 
As overtime started, the Norse cranked up their pressure on the ball. Justin Wolstenholme was all over the place, quickly earning a free kick in the attacking third. The free kick resulted in a shot attempt for Wolstenholme that rose over crossbar. Yaw Addai saved the Norse later on in the first overtime as Fleak misplayed the ball, leaving the net open for the Thundering Heard. Addai stuck his foot out, clearing the ball, keeping the score-line level. Austin Pierce has a crack at goal in the final seconds of overtime number one, but his shot deflected off a Marshall defender and went out of bounds as the clock expired.
 
The second overtime began and Nathan Sexton got a quick chance at goal. A ball sent in by McGregor deflected off a Marshall defender and landed at the feet of Sexton. He took the shot from outside of the penalty area and the ball curled away, wide of the target. O'Reilly had a chance with a few minutes remaining when his head connected with the corner from Murphy. The shot went wide of the goal by only a few yards. The Norse had their chances in overtime but after 110 minutes, the two sides couldn't be separated and the game ended in a 1-1 draw.
 
"To their (Marshall) credit they came back and to our credit we battled the whole game," said Basalyga. "I thought we were two evenly matched teams. Marshall is a very good program."
 
The long season opening road trip concluded for the Norse. Basalyga and company are excited to get back to Highland Heights and play a game in front of their home fans.
 
"We are excited to finally be playing at home," said Basalyga. "To play as many games as we have on the road and to be in every game is a tribute to our players. We could have just packed up our bags and quit. We told them today that they have done well for the week but we asked if them how they wanted to finish. They battled and I think they did very well."
 
The Norse will have a week off until they will play their home opener against Bowling Green State on Sept. 29. The Norse moved to 3-2-3 this season and have concluded their eight game road trip with a record that shows much improvement over last season. Be sure to follow the official NKU men's soccer Twitter account @NKUNorseMSOC for all news and updates concerning the NKU men's soccer team.