A weekend of tough in-conference competition sent the men’s soccer team, which now stands at 10-2-1 overall, on a tumultuous ride. The Yellowjackets had moved into first place in the University Athletic Association after a convincing win Friday night over Washington University in St. Louis.
However, the men’s hopes of clinching a spot as conference champions became slimafter a devastating loss Sunday morning to the University of Chicago.
UR played what head coach Chris Apple proclaimed to be “the best complete game we’ve played all season,” in their 2-0 victory over Washington.
Senior midfielder and captain Ramzi Sidani scored midway through the first half off a pass from sophomore midfielder Nick Wheeler to end the Bears’ goaltender Giles Bissonette’s 369 minute scoreless streak.
Junior forward Mike Chen solidified the win with his fourth goal of the season with just under 10 minutes remaining in the game.
“We played a great game against Washington,” said Apple. “We were dominant in almost every aspect of the game from goalkeeping all the way up the field. Washington didn’t have a prayer the way we played.”
UR’s dominance was clearly reflected in the final game stats, as it not only outshot the Bears 16-7, but held a 9-1 advantage in corner kicks as well. The win over the Bears had put UR in an ideal position to clinch a UAA title.
UR faced the formidable challenge of competing against two talented opponents within just over 36 hours, while Chicago came into the match after a 5-2 trouncing of Brandeis University. Unfortunately, back-to-back games against tough opponents proved to be too much.
UR fell out of contention for the conference crown with a 3-1 loss to Chicago early Sunday morning.
“The hardest part for any team is the mental side of the game,” Apple said. “We were playing back-to-back opponents who are great teams, while Chicago faced an easy opponent on Friday. After expending all of that emotional and physical energy [on Friday], it was hard to find anything left for Sunday.”
UR was able to get the edge early on against Chicago as Chen scored his second goal of the weekend off a pass from sophomore midfielder Ben Cross 6:40 p.m. into the first half.
Chen is currently UR’s second leading scorer with five goals and one assist for 11 points and is behind junior forward Jacques Appleby, who has eight goals for 16 points.
Chicago equalized just eight minutes later, and gained a 2-1 lead at 35:07 in the first half. UR never recovered from the deficit, and Chicago clinched the win with a lackluster goal with just over two minutes left in the half.
With one in-conference game remaining, UR is now part of a trio tied for second place in the UAA behind the Bears, who have the
See SOCCER, Page 19
