VILLANOVA, Pa. — New Haven men's soccer lost 3-1 to Villanova on Tuesday in a road match at Higgins Soccer Complex, finishing with a 25-16 shot advantage and 12 shots on goal. The Chargers' lone goal came in the first half.
Vinicius Lemke (Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil/Colégio Marista) scored for New Haven at 30:22 and put both of his shots on frame.
Filipe Lemos (Ponte de Barca, Viana do Castelo, Portugal/Escola Secundária de Ponte da Barca) recorded an assist and added one shot,
Cristopher Arias (Riverhead, N.Y./Riverhead) also tallied an assist while putting his lone shot on goal and
Ali Taleb (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) led the Chargers with four shots, including two on goal.
The Chargers generated the opening chances, with Taleb and Arias forcing saves in the first eight minutes before Luca Mazzola put Villanova ahead at 9:20. The Blue & Gold kept creating chances after falling behind, getting saved shots from
Salvador Fernandes (Lisbon, Portugal/Lycee Français Charles Le Pierre) and Taleb, but Fynn Lahrsen made it 2-0 at 16:28.
Lemke delivered New Haven's first-half response at 30:22, scoring off assists from Lemos and Arias to bring the Blue & Gold within 2-1. After the goal, the Chargers dealt with a Villanova push that included multiple shots and corner kicks without conceding again. New Haven closed the half with pressure of its own, getting shots from
Richard Henry (Minard Hill, St. Ann, Jamaica/Edwin Allen),
Gage Estep (Birmingham, Ala./Homewood),
Trevor Pegg (Darien, Conn./Darien) and
Luke Fiscella (New Fairfield, Conn./New Fairfield) plus a late corner before going into halftime down 2-1.
The Chargers spent the second half playing from a 2-1 deficit and created extended pressure before conceding in the 82nd minute, when Luke Martelli scored for Villanova off Sam Nyenka's assist to make it 3-1. Earlier in the half, Lemke and
Santiago Arroyave (Passaic, N.J./Passaic County Technical Insititute) put shots on goal in the opening minutes.
The Blue & Gold followed with a stretch from 55:11 to 62:51 that included five shots and three corner kicks. Henry had a shot turned away by a team save during that surge, while
Lukian Lawro (Albertson, N.Y./Mineola) and
Andres Lazo (Montville, N.J./Montville) forced saves before Lazo later hit the left woodwork in the 72nd minute.
After Villanova's third goal, the Chargers kept pushing with late attempts from
Darsein Gabriel (Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich),
Matheus Guimaraes (), Taleb and
Londell Wheeler (Glen Cove, N.Y./Glen Cove), but the match ended 3-1 in favor of Villanova.
Up Next
New Haven will host Chicago State University on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 6 p.m. at Kathy Zolad Stadium in West Haven, Connecticut.
