Men's Soccer Falls 1-0 at Cincinnati

Saturday, September 29

Cincinnati, Ohio

4:00 P.M.

Temple University

3-5-2, 1-1AAC

Cincinnati

3-7-0, 1-1AAC

Temple

Cincinnati

Men's Soccer Falls 1-0 at Cincinnati

9.29.18 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

CINCINNATI – The Temple University men's soccer squad (3-5-2, 1-1-0) fell to the Cincinnati Bearcats (3-7-0, 1-1-0), 1-0, on Saturday afternoon. Despite multiple threatening opportunities for the Owls, Cincinnati's early goal was enough to hand the Cherry and White their first conference loss of the season.

How it Happened
> Cincinnati struck early against the Owls, scoring the only goal of the game in just the sixth minute of action. The scoring play started with the Bearcat goalie lobbing a goal kick over the midfield line. The ball ricocheted over the Temple back line and found the feet of Rex Epps, who buried it for his team-leading third goal of the season.
> In the first half, one of the best opportunities for the Owls came in the 27th minute when junior Nick Sarver delivered a left-footed cross to the center of the box. Sophomore Justin Hahn made a great the run in to receive the cross, but shot the ball just wide right.
> Shots were hard to come by with the exception of long-distance attempts, as both defenses stood tough throughout the match. Possession controlled most of the game as junior goalkeeper Simon Lefebvre only made two saves on the day, and Cincinnati saved one.

Game Notes
> The strong defensive efforts from both squads were illustrated by Temple only taking four shots throughout the match to Cincinnati's seven. But, the shot totals do not accurately depict the nail-biting chances each team narrowly missed over the course of the game.
> The teams were evenly matched in corner kicks with both receiving three opportunities apiece.
> It was a physical battle with 41 total fouls called over 90 minutes of play. Five cards were also assigned throughout the match, with four of these cautions coming in the last 14 minutes of play.

Quotable
> "We didn't start off as brightly as I would have liked, and when you go down early like that it certainly changes the game," said head coach Brian Rowland. "I think we had control of the game in terms of possession and keeping the ball, but we still need to a better job to create more opportunities and find more chances. We will process this game, and continue to work to get better for our next match."

Up Next
The Owls look to bounce back on Wednesday, October 3rd as they head to Hillside, N.J. to take on the NJIT Highlanders. The non-conference match-up is set to kick off at 3:30 p.m, and the game will be played on the campus of Kean University East Campus Facility.