TU men’s soccer continues losing streak

Sports writer Myles Few discusses the men’s soccer team’s loss on Friday.
The University of Tulsa men’s soccer team met with The University of North Carolina Charlotte on Friday. Coming into the game, the Golden Hurricane held a record of 4-5-2 overall and 2-2 in the American Athletic Conference, sitting in 4th place. On the other hand, the 49ers were sitting at 2nd in the conference, earning a record of 6-2-1 overall and 4-1 in the AAC. It shaped up to be a crucial game for both teams, as Charlotte was hoping to keep a top spot for the conference tournament and TU was looking to return to form after a losing streak in conference play.
Fans at Transamerica Field in Charlotte were not seated for very long, an exciting game having them fully standing to not miss any play. TU, who has had some trouble passing out of the back in recent games, was dispossessed in front of goal by 49ers’ forward Natsuki Ogata, who put it past TU goalkeeper Alex Lopez to make it 1-0 in the second minute of the game. Ogata would continue to cause problems for TU, as 20 minutes later, he had a dangerous shot fly just over the crossbar after a quick Charlotte counter-attack.
The 49ers continued to put pressure on the Golden Hurricane defense with a high press, but TU’s slower, possession style of play started to pay off for it towards the end of the first half. After a flurry of crosses into the box, TU was able to earn a corner kick, where Tom Protzek’s great delivery found Camilo Vargas in front of goal. A great save from Charlotte goalkeeper Leo Stritter kept the Golden Hurricane off the scoreboard.
The score remained 1-0 in favor of Charlotte all the way to the halftime whistle. Despite being down on the scoreboard, it was TU who went back to the locker room with more shots, possession and corner kicks, drawing similarities to their last game where they also recorded more shots, corners and possession than their opponents, but fewer goals.
The Golden Hurricane started the second half just as it ended the first half, putting pressure on the 49ers’ defense with crosses into the box. TU almost found the equalizer it was searching for when a cross fell right in front of goal with TU forward Takayoshi Wyatt in the vicinity. Charlotte defender and captain Ian Pilcher’s quick reflexes got there just in time to clear it away.
TU’s offense continued to put pressure on the 49ers with four shots inside the first 10 minutes, but no goals came due to some spectacular saves by Leo Stritter. Finally, in the 67th minute, Mike Eijgendaal crosses another ball in front of goal, and team captain Sergio Baena is able to level the score with a diving header for his 4th goal of the season. That goal put Baena, who had been a handful for the Charlotte defense all game, tied for most goals on the team with senior forward Malik Henry-Scott.
TU did not let up after tying the game. It pressed the Charlotte defense right from the kickoff with high energy. That sporadic energy resulted in a foul from defender Luke Jeffus not far outside of the box, giving the 49ers a dangerous opportunity. Matthew Kirk stood over it for Charlotte and crossed it to the back post, finding defender Ian Pilcher wide-open for an easy header to put the 49ers ahead once more in the 73rd minute.
After falling behind 2-1, the Golden Hurricane became more aggressive while sending more players forward, but were unable to earn any more quality chances before almost conceding another. Two great saves from Lopez kept it just a one-goal difference as the final whistle blew for full-time, giving the Charlotte 49ers the three points.
With the win, Charlotte improved to 7-2-1 overall and first place in the conference. The Golden Hurricane now holds a record of 4-6-2 overall with a conference record of 2-3, falling to 5th place in the AAC. TU will be back in action on Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. when it returns home to host the No. 6 ranked Southern Methodist University Mustangs at the Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium.