Men's Soccer Battles Cincinnati to 1-1 Draw in Saturday Night Conference Clash

Saturday, October 5

Philadelphia, Pa.

7:00 PM

Temple University

3-5-1

Cincinnati

3-6-1

CIN

TEM

Men's Soccer Battles Cincinnati to 1-1 Draw in Saturday Night Conference Clash

10.5.19 | Men's Soccer

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA – The Temple men's soccer team (3-5-1, 0-1-1 AAC) battled Cincinnati (3-6-1, 0-1-1 AAC) to a 1-1 draw on Saturday evening under the lights at the Temple Sports Complex. The Owls struck first in the eighth minute, but the Bearcats responded just five minutes later to force the conference match into double overtime.

How it Happened
> The Owls wasted no time out the gate as Lukas Fernades drove up the field in the first minute of play. The senior captain sent a far-post cross that found Jalen Campbell, who sent the first shot of the game just high.
> The Cherry and White pressure paid off when they notched their quickest goal of the season in just the eighth minute. Redshirt junior Brandon Johnson buried a header off of an Esteban Suarez corner kick to secure his first-ever goal for Temple and give the Owls the early lead.
> The Bearcats responded just five minutes later when traffic in the box deflected the ball to the foot of Mason Volker, who slipped it past senior goalkeeper Simon Lefebvre for his first goal of the season.
> Three minutes later, the Owls nearly nudged ahead when sophomore Tyrese Edwards threaded the ball to a driving Fernandes, who rocketed a shot just right of frame. Later in the half, the back-and-forth battle nearly landed in favor of Cincinnati when Shevan Stewart got behind the Temple back line, but senior captain Pierre Cayet made a sliding save to keep the game tied at 1.
> Just two minutes into the second half, Temple almost re-took the lead when senior Leandros Lillis chipped a 25-yard free kick into dangerous territory, but Bearcat keeper Noah Lawrence punched the ball to safety. 10 minutes later, sophomore Elias Hellgren Villegas collected a scrambled ball off a Temple corner kick and fired off a shot on frame, but Lawrence came up big for Cincinnati again with a diving save.
> Fernandes hit the crossbar in the 60th minute after winning the ball and curling in a left-footed shot. With four minutes left in regulation, the senior struck on frame again but was denied by Lawrence once more.
> Heading into overtime, redshirt-sophomore Paul Frendach saved the day with a clearance off the goal line to keep the score even after a threatening shot by Cincinnati. Only seven minutes into the first overtime period, freshman Aly Camara hit the crossbar off a Lior Nesher corner kick and the Owls put it away with what seemed to be the game-winner, but the goal was ultimately called offsides.

Game Notes
> Johnson's first goal in Cherry and White felt extra sweet after finding the back of the net twice so far this season, but both goals for the redshirt junior were deemed offsides. He's now the fifth Owl to score this year.
> Once again, Fernandes led the Owls with eight shots, three of which he put on target. Temple out-shot Cincinnati 20-14 and put seven on frame to the Bearcats' two.
> Lefebvre moves to 3-5-1 between the posts as he's played every minute for the Owls this season. The senior did not make a save in 110 minutes of play for the second time this season, illustrating the strength of the Temple back line.

From the Coach
> "I thought we played well throughout the entire contest," said head coach Brian Rowland. "We created chances, especially early on in the game. Cincinnati saw some opportunities in transition, which we anticipated, but I think we carried play for most of the game. We would've liked to have created more goals from our chances, but we have to own that and start putting these opportunities away."

Up Next
> The Owls hit the road on Tuesday, Oct. 8 as they head to New York to take on St. John's. Kickoff for the nonconference match-up is set for 7 p.m.