Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Robert Morris men's soccer team lost their first game of the season, falling 0-1 to Duquesne. The Colonials are now 3-1-2 overall and remain 1-0 in the Horizon League. The Dukes move up to 3-1-1 in 2023.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
With a long history between these two rival teams, the game started off quite physically from the opening kick-off. Anthony DiFalco of Duquesne was given a yellow card just two minutes into the game.
In the opening 10 minutes of the match, there were 11 fouls called, making it a hard time for either side to get into a rhythm.
The Colonials soon got their first quality chance. Off a free kick,
Anass Hadran found
Fabian Overkamp on the back post near goal. Overkamp took a touch and popped one across the box to the feet of
John Paul Mbuthia. In quick motion, Mbuthia juggled it up to himself to hit a volleyball about 10 yards from goal, steering towards the left side, but Duquesne's keeper Zoltan Nagy made the stop.
Going the other way, the Dukes hurdled down the left side to create a chance of their own. Freshman goalkeeper
Kieran Gorgenyi preserved the tie, as the shot was blasted above his head and he jumped high to tip the ball over the crossbar.
Throughout the rest of the first half, neither side could get into a groove offensively. Freshman
Kyler Miller made a hard tackle by accident and was given a yellow card. In the 37
th minute, Duquesne's Ben Pleavin entered the match and was also issued a caution. With just a minute left in the half, he caused another collision that the referee deemed dangerous and was given a second yellow card, turning into a red card.
"I thought we weathered the storm early," said head coach Jonathan Potter. "Then we really found our way in the middle of the first half. We felt very good going into halftime."
At the end of the first half, the shots were tied up at six a piece. And, the Colonials would go into the second half knowing they'd be a man-up for the remainder of the game.
Instantly, into the second half, RMU started to gain more opportunities. Three minutes in, freshman
Yanis Rucquois took a shot on a dangerous free-kick. The Belgian came inches away from scoring as his shot just went wide of the top-right corner.
Moments later, the Colonials advanced up the field on a counterattack.
Chase Gilley cut to the right and played a through-ball between two defenders to find Mbuthia, closing in on goal. Mbuthia got the shot off but the Duke's goalie charged forward, making the stop.
Duquesne, being a man-down, did not spend much time in RMU's own zone, but this time in the 71
st minute, they created the game-winning goal off a throw-in near goal. As the ball bounced through the box, Jaxon Ervin slid the ball over to Jayden Da, finishing off the team's go-ahead goal.
With time winding down, RMU continued to close in on goal.
Logan Gilley drove down the right side, dribbling past two players and scorched a shot that just went inches wide of the left post. And,
Anass Hadran from 30 yards out hit a screamer on frame, causing Zoltan Nagy to make a diving save.
The Colonials created many chances but just failed to score the tying goal, losing their first game of the season, 0-1 to Duquesne.
SCORING PLAYS AND CAUTIONS
2' – Yellow Card: Anthony DiFalco
31' – Yellow Card: Kyler Miller
37' – Yellow Card: Ben Pleavin
44' – Red Card: Ben Pleavin
68' – Yellow Card: Nolan Hutter
71' – Goal: Jayden Da (5), Assisted by: Jaxon Ervin (2)
POTTER'S POSSESSION
Head coach Jonathan Potter's squad had the majority of possession against another team once again. By the end of the match, RMU held 57% of the possession. 27% of the Colonials possession came in the offensive zone, with 60% being in the middle of the park.
LONE SOLDIER
In tonight's game, only one player for RMU played all 90 minutes. That player would be center back
Fabian Overkamp. Through the first six games of the season, Overkamp leads all field players in minutes played with 521. From Konigswinter, Germany, the German has been a staple for RMU's backline.
QUOTABLE
"Duquesne is a really good team and they've shown that the past couple of years. We felt we were in control of the match, but tonight just wasn't our night. We've played six games and only have lost one now against a very good team. Now, we have a really important game coming up on Saturday."
– Head Coach Jonathan Potter
UP NEXT
RMU gets right back into conference action in their next game as they host IUPUI on Saturday, September 16 at 2:00 p.m.
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