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Men's Soccer Ties No. 21 Seton Hall, 2-2, In BIG EAST Quarterfinals
Nov. 5, 2005
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. -- The Providence College men's soccer team played to a 2-2 tie with No. 21 Seton Hall in BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinal action on Saturday, November 5 at South Orange, N.J. After the 110:00 of action (two overtimes), the two teams remained tied at 2-2 and the Friars captured the penalty kick shootout, 4-2. By winning the shootout, the Friars advance to the BIG EAST Semifinals for the second time in three years. The Friars will play the winner of the West Virginia/University of South Florida game in the Semifinals on Friday, November 11 at 3:30 p.m. at Storrs, Conn. The game will be televised live by CSTV. Providence, which finished in sixth place in the BIG EAST Blue Division, entered Saturday's game versus No. 21 Seton Hall (second place in the Blue Division) as the underdog. The Friars had advanced to the Quarterfinals with a 2-1 BIG EAST Tournament First Round win at Cincinnati on November 2. By finishing in second place in the Blue Division, Seton Hall earned a bye in the First Round and was coming off six days of rest. The Pirates got on the scoreboard first when junior Sacha Kljestan scored his ninth goal of the season in the 41st minute. Kljestan knocked in a one-timer from 15 yards out in the 41st minute. Two minutes later, senior Derek Nobrega (Cumberland, R.I.) tied the game at 1-1. He took a long cross and chipped in a shot from 12 yards. The Friars came out strong in the second half and took a 2-1 lead in the 60th minute as sophomore Alex Bury (Shrewsbury, Mass.) scored on a free kick from 28 yards that deflected off a defender and was redirected past Seton Hall goalkeeper Ian Joyce. However, the lead did not last long as the Pirates scored in the 63rd minute. Eliseo Giusfredi scored on a header off a cross from David Roman. Neither team was able to score over the remainder of regulation and the Friars entered their 10th overtime contest of the season.
The Friars held a 4-3 shot advantage in overtime and nearly won the game in the first overtime on a shot by sophomore Ryan Maduro (Bristol, R.I.), but the rebound was kicked off the goal line by a Seton Hall defender. Junior Chris Konopka (Toms River, N.J.) recorded eight saves in the game. Joyce recorded five saves for the Pirates. In the shootout, the Friars went first and senior Eoin Lynch (Yarmouth, Maine) scored on his penalty kick. Seton Hall was stopped by Konopka on its first attempt and the Friars took a 2-1 lead when Nobrega connected on his attempt. Seton Hall scored on its second attempt. After Maduro hit the cross bar for PC, Seton Hall tied the score at 2-2 as the Pirates converted on their third attempt. Bury scored PC's third penalty kick goal on the team's fourth attempt. On Seton Hall's fourth attempt, Konopka made another key stop as he sprawled to the right and deflected the shot away. Senior Zach Tobin (North Kingstown, R.I.) sealed the shootout win for PC as he scored on the Friars' fifth opportunity. "We did not play well in the first half and we were fortunate to be tied, 1-1, with such a strong team," Friar Head Coach Chaka Daley said. "We improved our play in the second half. I was confident as we headed into penalty kicks. Chris (Konopka) made two tremendous saves to help us earn the win. The guys are excited and looking forward to keeping this going and playing in New England in front of our fans next Friday." at South Orange, N.J.
Providence (6-3-8) 1 1 0 0 -- 2 Seton Hall (12-3-3) 1 1 0 0 -- 2 |
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