On Saturday, Sept. 16, the Oakland men’s soccer team lost their second in-conference game of the season, 3-0, to the Northern Kentucky University Norse at home.
The Norse opened the game with possession and tried to set up an attack early before the Grizzlies took it away. After multiple throw-ins, the ball slowly progressed down the field, deep into the Grizzlies territory. The Norse ultimately lost possession of the ball but stayed aggressive.
After a defensive stand, OU capitalized on a break, featuring three attackers and a solitary Norse defender. Unfortunately, due to some passing errors by the Grizzlies, their initial shot attempt missed the target.
In the 10th minute, the Norse defense started to cause problems for the Grizzlies. After a great corner kick by OU, the Norse shut down any chance of a goal. The Grizzlies remained in great control of the ball but stayed aggressive on the offensive side.
The referee stopped play 23 minutes in after Norse midfielder Roberto Burlew got into a scuffle with OU defenseman Malik Sylvester. Despite being shoved to the ground, Sylvester was assessed a yellow card, the first yellow card of the afternoon for the Grizzlies.
Following a missed free kick from the Norse, both teams remained patient on offense for the rest of the first half. The Grizzlies would get one more solid look at a goal with a minute to go in the first half but failed to convert, leaving the game scoreless entering halftime.
While there were some mishaps on defense in the first half, OU remained in great control of the game, and although they didn’t score, the Grizzlies’ control led to more chances to score compared to NKU.
The Grizzlies opened the second half with possession. Despite having decent control of the ball, the Norse matched their energy, leading to a long cross by the Norse in the 48th minute. Following the cross, NKU would find the net for the first time in the match, giving them a 1-0 lead.
Despite remaining in great control of the ball in the following five minutes of play, the Grizzlies could not find a good look at a goal. NKU continued to congest the passing lanes deep in their territory, breaking up any progression at a goal the Grizzlies could muster.
Oakland’s closest look at a goal all match would come 20 minutes into the second half. After finally breaking through the defensive wall of the Norse, a shot attempt went just wide of the goal.
Following the miss by OU, the Norse were on the offensive attack again. In the 67th minute of the match, the Norse scored a second time, increasing the lead to 2-0 with 23 minutes left to go in the match.
NKU found the net for the final time in the 67th minute, giving them a comfortable 3-0 lead. Despite focusing primarily on the defensive side, the Norse continued to take advantage of the few offensive opportunities they saw in the second half.
The Grizzlies got another solid look at the net with seven minutes remaining but failed to score again. OU’s final shot attempt would come with three minutes left on the clock, and NKU goalie Nic Lemen saved it yet again.
The men’s soccer squad will play next on Saturday, Sept. 23, where they’ll take on the Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis Jaguars on the road. The next home game will occur on Saturday, Sept. 30, against the Milwaukee Panthers.
