Sept. 17, 2003
CINCINNATI - A late free kick was the difference in a defensive struggle, as the Cleveland State men's soccer team fell to Cincinnati, 1-0, in Cincinnati. With the loss, Cleveland State falls to 4-3 on the season, while Cincinnati moves to 2-1-3.
The Bearcats controlled play for much of the first half, outshooting the Vikings 8-2 and collecting nine corner kicks to CSU's one. Cincinnati had the best scoring opportunity in the first half, when UC's Tim Brown fired a hard shot at Viking goalkeeper Amir Kettani, who made a nice save on the ball in front of the net. But Cleveland State kept frustrating Cincinnati, something that was part of the Viking game plan.
"That's exactly what we came down to do," head coach Pete Curtis said. "The guys worked very hard to contain and frustrate them, and we did a very good job of it in the first half."
The Bearcats finally got on the board at the 70 minute mark, when Josh Gardner hit a free kick from 35 yards out into the far corner of the net past Kettani.
"That goal was a gift to them," Curtis said. "It took away a whole game's worth of good work. The guys played a very sound tactical game and worked very hard, we just had one mistake that ended up costing us, at worst, a draw."
Cleveland State's best chance at a goal came in the 60th minute, when Stephen Ademolu played a through ball to Spencer Lappin, whose shot from 15 yards out was saved by Cincinnati goalkeeper John Adams.
Also hampering the Viking effort was an unfamiliarity with the FieldTurf surface at Cincinnati's Meyers Field.
"The guys seemed not ready for the pace of the ball on this surface," Curtis said. "However, once we got possession of the ball, we didn't do a very good job of keeping possession."
The Vikings will next face UIC on Saturday at 3 p.m. at Krenzler Field. Saturday's match will also be part of the 50 Years of Viking Soccer celebration, which will include an alumni game at noon.
"It'll be nice to get home and play in front of the home crowd," Curtis said. "It will finally give our fans a chance to see these guys play."
