Box ScoreBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Northern Kentucky University men's soccer team was handed their first defeat of 2014 season by the Bowling Green Falcons. The Falcons scored a late goal in the 85th minute to secure the 2-1 win over the Norse.
The first half started off slow with both teams battling to control the pace of the match. The Norse ultimately claimed the most possession in the first 45 minutes, but the Falcons outshot them, 9-3. The Norse defense bent all night, and it broke down just before halftime.
In the 44th minute, the Norse played a misplaced pass back to the keeper and Bowling Green's Brad Macomber seized the opportunity for the Falcons. He gained possession of the ball and hit it low, under the diving
A.J. Fleak. Bowling Green took the 1-0 lead into half.
"We kind of started slow to try to get some momentum going," said head coach
John Basalyga. "We made a goofy mistake and got behind."
The Norse came out in the second half with fire in their eyes. They cranked up the pressure on the Bowling Green backline behind the attacking from
Caleb Eastham,
Cian McDonald,
Diego Martinez and
Alwin Komolong. In the 64th minute, McDonald sent a cross in the box and found Eastham on the far post. Eastham had an open header and smashed the ball in the goal, leveling the match.
"The second half we played a lot better and got back in it," said Basalyga. "Cian's pass to Caleb was great and the overall fitness of our team was where we wanted it to be."
The attacking continued after the equalizer. Freshmen
Rader Massey and
Campbell Morris each had chances to net the go-ahead goal but both of their shots would sail high of the frame. The match looked to be heading for overtime, but the Falcons had other plans.
Bowling Green launched a counter attack after the Norse turned the ball over in the midfield in the 85th minute. Bowling Green's Danny Baraldi and Brad Macomber linked up with Pat Flynn, who took a shot from just inside the 18-yard box. His shot curled just inside the left goalpost and gave the Falcons the lead. The Norse fought as best they could for the last five minutes, but the match ended as a 2-1 loss.
"We made another silly mistake in the second half and let one get away," said Basalyga. "Bowling Green is a good team. They have a lot of offensive people, and they do a nice job of holding on to the ball. We still have a lot of work to do with our defense and our shape. Our midfielders played very well but when you play a team that offensively oriented, you are going to get stretched out."
One of the stories within the match was Basalyga's return to his alma mater at Bowling Green. Basalyga spent two years at Bowling Green, playing baseball and club hockey, and his daughter, Lindsay, is currently the head coach of the Bowling Green women's soccer team.
"It was a fun game to watch because both teams were running all over the place, up and down the field," said Basalyga. "The fact that my daughter coaches there and I played there made for a really neat night. That is the fun part of athletics and for me; I just enjoy seeing my kid."
The Norse fell to 1-1-2 overall with the loss. They will return to action on Sunday, Sept. 14 to take on IPFW at 3 p.m. at the NKU Soccer Stadium as the second half of a doubleheader with the women's team, which faces Robert Morris at noon.
"This is a process, and you learn from each game," said Basalyga. "You take away the good things and improve on the bad ones. We have to find the mistakes we made and make sure they don't happen again. It's a long season."
Live stats and video for the IPFW match will be available at nkunorse.com. For a behind the scenes look at the NKU men's soccer team throughout the season, follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram under NKUNorseMSOC.
