Steffen Deetjen
Staff Writer
On Sunday, Oct. 18 the Dons went up against Saint Mary’s College at Negoesco Stadium and lost 1-0 in an extremely close match that ended up going to overtime. This defeat gives the Dons a record of 4-10-0, 2-1-0.
In the ninth minute, Dons forward Bryce Kaminski made a nice pass to forward David Garrett who was making a run into the box. Garrett was able to get a shot off, but the Gaels’ keeper deflected the ball. Another scoring opportunity for the Dons presented itself in the 67th minute when midfielder Davi Ramos had a brief advantage on the counter attack; however, Ramos was not able to get a clean shot and missed a great chance. While the Dons had all these scoring opportunities, the Gaels too had some great chances, one of which they capitalized on in the 98th minute for the win. This game marked the first loss for the Dons in the West Coast Conference play.
The Gaels and the Dons were closely matched by the end of overtime. Both teams had nine shots on goal with four of those being for the Gaels and five for the Dons. Midfielder Aaron Lombardi made a massive contribution to the Dons by taking off three shots, all of which were on goal. However, despite the Dons’ ability to keep up with the Gaels shot wise, the Gaels were able to create more opportunities through their set pieces. By the end of the match, the Gaels had a total of ten corners, which ultimately opened up more opportunities for them to score.
The Friday before, the men’s USF soccer team went up against University of the Pacific at Negoesco Stadium and won with an outstanding score of 3-0. This win gave the Dons a record of 4-9-0, 2-0-0. The Dons outplayed the Tigers in this match and it showed from the three goals that they scored. The Dons came out of the match with 20 shots taken off and seven of those on goal. The Dons were able to keep possession throughout the first, but were unable to score right off the bat, having to wait until the second half. The first goal was scored by David Garrett in the 51st minute with a header that went into the far post. The next goal was scored in the 71st minute when forward Aaron Lombardi had a set piece following a Pacific foul. From 40 yards out, Lombardi was able to arch in a shot from the right wing giving him his third goal of the season.
Securing the win in the 83rd minute, midfielder Jonathan Fabulich scored his first goal of the season after coming off the bench. Assisted from forward Kevin de la Torre on the left wing, Fabulich was able to fire a firm shot that bounded through a gap in the defense and found itself in the back of the net. This goal gave the Dons the 3-0 advantage and sealed the victory for the Dons. With this victory over the Tigers, the Dons acquired their second win for the West Coast Conference play.
The Dons will return to action on Oct. 30 at Gonzaga beginning at 2pm.
Photo courtesy of Dons Athletics
