On a gorgeous Saturday afternoon at Owen T. Carroll Field, the Seton Hall Pirates (4-7-3) fell short to the #23 team in the nation, the Providence College Friars (8-2-2) in a 3-0 match.
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The Friars were able to jump on the scoreboard early, Brazilin senior, Fabio Machado made a great individual effort and was able to put a great shot on the left post to give the Friars the early 1-0 lead. The Friars would go on to receive two insurance goals in the second half from sophomore forward Mac Steeves in the 58th minute, and sophomore mid-fielder Julian Gressel, in the 88th minute.
“Overall our performance was very poor,” head coach Gerson Echeverry said following the loss. “We cannot give up a goal in the first five minutes of the match and expect to compete. Our defense has to play better.”
Despite allowing the early goal to Machado in the first half, the Pirates did a nice job possessing the ball, and creating opportunities to tie the match. The Pirates outshot the Friars in the first half 7-4, including a shot that went wide by sophomore Samuel Geiler for a chance to net his second of the season. He would finish the day with three shots, one on goal.
The second half saw the Pirates get outshot 13-5 and putting sophomore Julian Spindler to work. The goalkeeper recorded eight saves on the day, while allowing all three Providence goals.
“These last two games have showed us that when we play good defense we can play against any team,” Echeverry said. Seton Hall was able to upset Georgetown just last week, but mightily struggled this afternoon against the Friars.
With the season winding down, the Pirates will look to get back on track as they travel to Butler on Wednesday, a game that will have major implications for the Big East standings. Kickoff versus the Bulldogs is set for 7 p.m.
Matthew Rachek can be reached at matthew.rachek@student.shu.edu
