Box Score Sept. 20, 2014 Final Stats
VILLANOVA, Pa. - On a delightful late summer afternoon Villanova (2-3-1 overall) and Monmouth (4-1-1 overall) battled to a 1-1 deadlock in a contest here at the Higgins Soccer Complex.
Villanova's goal came with just two ticks remaining on the first half clock when Aaron Dennis recorded his second of the season.
"We played well," stated Villanova head coach Tom Carlin. "I thought we had a good game plan and carried it out for the most part. Monmouth was fortunate on its goal but I'm really proud of the guys."
Indeed, it was a day where the stat sheet reflected that the Wildcats had the better of the play for most of the 110 minutes. Villanova out-shot the Hawks 23-12 on the day and forced Monmouth goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky to make six saves. There were a host of dangerous bids by VU, particularly in the first 20 minutes of the second period.
"I told the guys after the game that we really needed to score a second goal to create separation against a good team," stated Carlin. "Things are going to happen to you in soccer and you put yourself in a better spot when you can create a little cushion.
"Even after they tied it, I thought we kept playing well. We had a good tempo."
The match was scoreless through 44 plus minutes when the public address announcer began to count down the final ten seconds of the stanza. The Wildcats generated one last push, with freshman Christopher Bared moving the ball up from his post at left back. The native of Miami, Fla., got the ball to Dennis who moved it past Klenofsky at 44:58.
"Bared did a nice job of getting the ball to Aaron who finished it," Carlin said.
The score energized the crowd at the Higgins Soccer Complex and Villanova carried that momentum into the second half. Dennis and classmate Oscar Umar led a charge that kept the pressure on the Hawks. But the second score never materialized and that set the stage for an equalizer.
At first glance the chance in the 75th minute did not seem to invite peril for the Wildcats. Monmouth's Jelani Williams dribbled the ball nearly parallel to the end line on the right outside the 18 yard box. He aimed a low blast from a difficult angle that found its way through before deflecting off the arms of goalkeeper Will Steiner. The ball found its way into the back of the net at 74:59.
The match was deadlocked.
Villanova would produce a 14-7 advantage in shots in the second half but could not snap the draw.
The contest moved into extra time and the chances were fewer in number in the two 10-minute overtime sessions. Both teams had expended ample energy on what was an unseasonably warm late September day with the temperature peaking at 81 degrees on West Campus.
The Wildcats owned a 4-0 edge in shots in the overtime periods but neither Klenosky or Steiner was forced to make a save. Steiner made four saves on the afternoon for Villanova.
Carlin would have much preferred three points to one, but he also saw a lot of things he liked. This was a day when VU;s back wall was very strong with central defenders Willis Griffith and Colton Bryant setting the tone and when its attack generated high-quality scoring opportunities.
"This is a fun team to coach," he stated. "We've made some strides at home and now we have to take that on the road and put ourselves into position to get the result at Lehigh."
The Wildcats completed a stretch of three straight at home with a 2-0-1 mark after dropping a trio of 1-0 decisions on the road to open the 2014 campaign. Villanova visits Lehigh Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. before returning to the Higgins Soccer Complex next Saturday for its BIG EAST opener against Creighton (1:00 p.m.).
