The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
VCU
Men's Soccer Allows Late Goal, Falls To No. 19 VCU
September 13 | Men's Soccer
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AKRON, Ohio – Despite dominating possession and out-shooting their opponent 28-3, The No. 7 University of Akron men's soccer team suffered a 1-0 defeat to No. 19 VCU Friday night in front of 3,319 fans at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field.
It was an unlikely result for the Zips (3-2-0), who controlled the match from the start but couldn't capitalize on their numerous chances. Rams goalkeeper Andrew Wells earned his first clean sheet of the year with seven saves, including a number of impressive stops in the first half.
With the win, VCU (2-1-1) picked up its second consecutive win on the road against a ranked opponent after knocking off No. 13 Maryland, 3-2, last Sunday.
The Rams scored the match's lone goal against the run of play when Dennis Castillo headed home Juan Monge Solano's long free kick from near mid field in the 75th minute. The decisive strike came on just the Rams' third and final shot of the night.
The Zips came out flying in the first half and pushed VCU to the limit, out-shooting the Rams 15-1, but couldn't break through. In particular, Akron had a great sequence in the 30th minute following one of four UA corner kicks in the first 45 minutes.
Robbie Derschang gathered a long service from Adam Najem on the far side of field and fired a liner that was saved by the Wells. The ball deflected quickly to Bryan Gallego, who briefly took possession in front of the net before sending it back in. But Wells made perhaps the play of the match with a point-blank stop of Gallego's strike.
Eric Stevenson capped off the rapid-fire series with another ball on frame just seconds later, but Wells turned it away as well.
In all, Akron recorded five shots on goal before halftime, including a great strike from Victor Souto from the top of the box that was pushed just over the cross bar in the 29th minute.
The Zips had to work harder to break down VCU's numbers in the second half but still managed to record 13 shots, while allowing just two. Nonetheless, Akron fell behind on the restart goal and couldn't find the equalizer.
Friday night's match was the second game of The University of Akron Tournament, which continues Sunday. The Zips will host San Diego St. at 1 p.m. ET, followed by VCU versus Niagara at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Zips Notebook: Friday was the first ever regular-season meeting between Akron and VCU ... Rams' head coach Dave Giffard was an assistant coach at UA from 2006-09 ... the Zips have lost just three times on their home field since 2007 ... Gallego left the field in the 63rd minute with an injury and did not return.
