Oct. 1, 2008
Final Stats
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Despite twice rallying from one goal deficits, Villanova was defeated 3-2 by Penn in a Philadelphia Soccer Seven contest played here this evening at Rhodes Field. Sophomore Anthony Griffith (Philadelphia, Pa./Haverford School) and Jake Heyer (Tupelo, Miss./Tupelo H.S.) each scored their first collegiate goals for the Wildcats in the loss.
The game's pivotal moment came in the 79th minute, just 15 seconds after Heyer had pulled the Wildcats even at 2. The Quakers pushed the ball ahead quickly and Andrew Ferry was racing towards the ball in the middle of the box when he collided with sliding Villanova goalkeeper Chris Bresnahan (McLean, Va./Gonzaga H.S.). Both players fell to the ground as the whistle blew. A penalty kick was awarded to the Quakers and Kevin Unger knocked the ball into the upper left hand part of the net to give Penn back the lead.
It was a difficult end to another rain soaked contest for the Wildcats.
Rain fell throughout the action and soaked the natural playing surface at Rhodes Field. Both teams found the going slick, though nowhere near as treacherous as conditions were last Sunday afternoon in a torrential downpour during the second half of Villanova's 0-0 tie with Georgetown.
Penn struck quickly in this contest. Bresnahan was sharp early as he made an excellent leaping save in the fourth minute on an Alex Grendi blast that appeared ticketed for the top corner of the net. But in the 14th minute, Ferry took a feed from Omid Shoukoufandeh, dribbled through the top of the box and sent a low shot past Bresnahan to give the Quakers (6-0-3 overall) the early 1-0 edge.
The Wildcats evened the match at 37:36 when junior Michael Seamon (Rahway, N.J./Union Catholic High School) dribbled past a Quaker defender along the right flank and sent a perfect low cross across the box that found Griffith waiting on the left side. Griffith calmly re-directed the pass into the net and the game was tied. It was Griffith's first collegiate goal and point.
Just when it appeared the game would remain deadlocked at intermission, the Quakers put together another nifty play of their own in Villanova's end. This time Ferry set it up, finding Christian Berriero, who finished the play at 42:24 with a goal to make it 2-1.
"Penn deserves credit for how they played," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "They moved the ball really well and we were on our heels early. I'm not sure if the conditions had something to do with it, but they were on us from the start."
The better chances in the early stages of the second half, though, belonged to Villanova. Finally, it was Heyer, who gave the `Cats a lift after entering the game as a reserve. Seamon created another chance, this time in the middle of the field and found Heyer open to the left side of the net. Heyer wasted no time in sending a low shot into the vacant side of the net and matters were tied at 2.
Then came the pivotal play in front of Villanova goal. The Wildcats mounted a furious late charge and had several near misses in the final ten minutes. But Penn escaped with the win.
"We're disappointed," stated Carlin. "But now we have to get back to the BIG EAST and focus on learning from this."
Villanova hosts Cincinnati at the Soccer Complex on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
