The Seton Hall Pirates won their first Big East game of the year on Oct. 4, knocking off the Marquette Golden Eagles, 1-0.
The Pirates came into this game with a 7-1-1 record after tying with UConn on Saturday, Sept. 28. The Golden Eagles were riding a two-game win streak after defeating Villanova and Butler in their first two tests against Big East competition.
The first 20 minutes of the game saw Seton Hall controlling possession, passing the ball back and forth in their own end until finding the right opportunity to strike. Marquette was operating like a hockey team on the wrong side of a 5-on-4 power play, constantly kicking the ball out of their side of the field, and seemingly content with the Hall controlling time of possession.
Seton Hall had fired five shots before the 34th minute when, off the pass from midfielder Til Kauschke, fifth-year defender Jared Smith for the screamer of a goal past Marquette freshman goalie Marten Brink to break the tie. By the end of the first half, Seton Hall dominated the shot totals 6-2, with one of them being saved by Brink.
The Pirates started off the second half playing aggressively when Marquette was controlling the ball on their defensive end. Marquette took advantage by getting two shots on goal in the first ten minutes of the half. By the time there were 25 minutes left in the game, the Golden Eagles managed to tie the shot totals at six a piece.
Seton Hall looked to add some insurance to their lead after a yellow card in the 67th minute from Marquette graduate forward Tim Smith; however, the resulting free kick and following corner kick led to nothing.
With Marquette continually on the offensive and threatening a tie, Seton Hall switched to a much more conservative style of defense for the rest of the game, aligning more with SHU head coach Andreas Lindberg’s usual “bend but don’t break” style.
Despite a couple more free kicks for Marquette, the Hall managed to waste time for long enough to let the clock hit zero and extend their unbeaten streak to three games, while simultaneously snapping Marquette’s two game win streak.
The Pirates are 9-2-1 and are looking forward to playing the Georgetown Hoyas on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 1 p.m.
John Misiewicz writes for The Setonian’s Sports section. He can be reached at john.misiewicz@student.shu.edu.
