Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Slips Past Northwestern, 2-1
11/6/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Nov. 6, 2005
Wisconsin 2, Northwestern 1
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's men's soccer team struck first, but dropped a 2-1 decision to Wisconsin Sunday at the L.B.T. Athletic Complex. Adam Sirois (Dover, N.H./Berwick Academy) scored his second goal of the year in the match.
The Wildcats started the match on the offensive. Northwestern controlled the ball early on, getting scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity. Junior forward Brad North (The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands) tallied five first-half shots, as the 'Cats continued to put the pressure on the Badger defense.
At 39:48, the pressure paid off. North headed one towards the Wisconsin goal, but it was saved by the Badger keeper. Sirois was right there for the shot off the rebound and sent the ball to the net, giving Northwestern a 1-0 lead.
Less than four minutes later, however, Wisconsin's Nick Caronna sent a left-footed shot past Northwestern goalkeeper Will Briley (Longview, Texas/Longview) to tie the score at 1-1.
The teams went into halftime knotted at 1-1. Northwestern enjoyed a 10-5 first-half shot advantage and each team had four corner kicks.
In the second half, both teams' offenses were clicking. Wisconsin outshot the Wildcats during the second stanza, but Briley stepped up and made six second-half saves.
As time wound down, the 'Cats decided to throw everything they had at the Badgers, and it almost paid off.
With four minutes remaining, senior Kevin Earnest (Lombard, Ill./Benet Academy) weaved through the Wisconsin defense and got a shot off from five yards out. Earnest's shot got past the goalie, but a Wisconsin player kicked the ball out at the last second for a defensive save. Senior Dave Vargas (North Olmstead, Ohio/St. Ignatius) got ahold of the ball and sent another shot, but the Wisconsin goalie recovered and made the save, barely keeping the Wildcats from the score.
With less than a minute to go, Wisconsin got the ball in transition. The Badgers found Victor Diaz streaking towards the Northwestern goal. Diaz beat his man and chipped a shot over the fast-approaching Briley for the game-winner.
For the match, Northwestern tallied 17 shots--its second-highest shot total of the season. The Wildcats also enjoyed an 8-6 corner kick advantage.
Northwestern's senior players were recognized before the match began as part of Senior Day at the L.B.T. Athletic Complex.
"Four years ago, these young men made a commitment to Northwestern. Our motto back then was 'building something special," head coach Tim Lenahan said. "Because of them, we can now just say this team is 'something special.' Next year, we'll miss their play on the field, but not as much as we will their dedication, work ethic and commitment."
Northwestern resumes play at the Big Ten Championship, Nov. 10-13, hosted by Northwestern University.
