Despite Second Half Offensive Flare, Men's Soccer Falls to Pitt, 3-2

Monday, October 15

Pittsburgh, Pa.

7:00 P.M.

Temple University

4-7-3, 1-2-1AAC

Pitt

7-7-0, 2-4-0ACC

Temple

Pitt

Despite Second Half Offensive Flare, Men's Soccer Falls to Pitt, 3-2

10.15.18 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

PITTSBURGH – Despite a resilient second half performance marked by two come from behind goals, the Temple University men's soccer squad (4-7-3, 1-2-1 AAC) fell on the road to Pitt (7-7, 2-4 ACC), 3-2. Two Owls shared the points to lead the Temple offense tonight, as freshman Elias Hellgren Villegas netted his first collegiate goal off of an assist by junior Lukas Fernandes, followed by a Fernandes goal received from Villegas.

How it Happened
> The Owls dominated possession for the majority of the first half, taking the edge in shots (6-4, 3-1 on goal) and corners (8-2) after the first 45 minutes of play. The first opportunity for Temple came in the 11th minute, when a Fernandes corner kick found the head of Villegas, who delivered it on frame but was denied by a Pitt defender.
> The Panthers got on the board first in the 28th minute of action, when Javi Perz converted a penalty kick opportunity for his fourth goal of the season. The Owls nearly responded two minutes later, when junior defender Nick Sarver almost scored a header goal off of a Temple corner, but the Pitt keeper was there to shut it down. The remainder of the first half consisted of fluctuating possession and few scoring opportunities for either side.
> The Owls came out of their halftime talk with a fire lit, netting the equalizing goal in the 50th minute. Fernandes split the Panther center backs to lead a charging Villegas, who calmly took one touch and placed it past the keeper for his first goal of the season.
> Pitt took the lead again in the 63rd minute, when the squad strung together a series of passes that led to the boot of Perez. The previous goal scorer sent the ball across to Alexander Dexter, who buried it one time for his first goal of the season.
> The Panthers extended their lead only four minutes later, when Dexter slotted a pass back from the left end line to a waiting Edward Kizza, who drilled it into the net for his 12th goal of the season.
> Despite being down two goals for the first time this season, the Owls showed resilience and continued to hustle for the remainder of the match. The fight paid off in the 80th minute, when Villegas sent the ball to Fernandes on the left side of the field, who opened his hips to slide the ball past the Pitt goalie and into the right side of the net. While the Owls kept the ball in Pitts' defensive third for the remainder of the match, the clock ran down before they were able to find the awaited equalizer.

Match Notes
> Fernandes continues to be an offensive force for the Owls, adding three more points to his team-leading tally of 14. He now has five goals and four assists on the year, involving himself in both scoring plays for the Owls for the second time this season.
> Villegas' three-point day moves him to third on the squad in total points, behind freshman Jalen Campbell and sophomore Justin Hahn who each have racked up six points from two goals and two assists. Villegas now has four points on the year, after entering the match with on assist under his belt.
> The Owls took the overall edge in shots (16-11) and corner kicks (9-4) in tonight's battle. Junior goalkeeper Simon Lefebvre saved four shots on the day, shutting down threatening opportunities for the Panthers.

Quotable
> "There were many moments where we played quite well, so it's disappointing that we couldn't pull out the win," said head coach Brian Rowland. "Pitt's a solid team that is very efficient in their chances, but we fought and competed until the end, creating opportunities up until the last play of the game."
> Rowland spoke on the difficult Monday night non-conference opponent from one of the best soccer conferences in the NCAA. "These games are crucial, and facing an ACC opponent on the road is a challenging task. The goal for these games is to make us a better team in our conference, and should help us put on a great performance for the rest of the season."

Up Next
> The Owls will head to Connecticut on Saturday, Oct. 20th to face the No. 13/20 UConn Huskies for an American Athletic Conference battle. The match is set to kick-off at 7:00 p.m. at Morrone Stadium.