Sept. 1, 2012

PHILADELPHIA - In a game determined by offensive opportunities, the men's soccer team came up short as it was upended by Saint Francis (N.Y.), 5-1, on Saturday evening at Finnesey Field.

In the opening half, Saint Joseph's found offensive opportunities as junior Pat McGlynn fired a shot just wide of the goal at the 5:26 mark and freshman midfielder Tim Lazorko attempted two solid shots on goal, one of which came off of a feed from a Jimmy Reilly fast break. Neither would result in points as both shots were saved by Terrier goalkeeper Tyler Clarhaut.

SJU senior goalkeeper Andrew D'Ottavi was defensively flawless in the opening stanza of the first half, making three saves in the first 20 minutes of regulation.

The Terriers got on the board first with back-to-back goals in the upper-left 90 by Kevin Correa (21:50) and Adam Maabdi (22:15). Another shot on goal by Saint Francis's James Caicedo threatened to extend the Terrier lead to three, but D'Ottavi scooped up the shot to tally his fourth save of the half as the Hawks headed into halftime.

Saint Francis added its third goal of the game just 1:25 into the second half as Simon Ytterbom dished a pass over to John Johansson, who put it just past a diving D'Ottavi. Ytterbom would attempt another shot on goal just over one minute later, but D'Ottavi came up with the save.

The Hawks saw their first goal of the game at the 50:27 mark as SJU's McGlynn found his way around a Terrier defender and kicked the ball passed Clarhaut to put Saint Joseph's on the board, 3-1. The goal marked McGlynn's first of the season and third of his career.

Saint Francis would add two more goals by Gabriel Bagot and Avyay Gujral in the 69th and 77th minute marks, respectively, to put the game away for the Terriers, 5-1.

Both teams finished nearly equal in corner kicks, with Saint Joseph's finding the slight advantage, 4-3, but the Terrier's offense came out on top as Saint Francis scored three of its five goals in the first 47 minutes of play.

On the defensive end, D'Ottavi made five saves on the day while allowing five goals. Lazorko and junior Brendan Reilly provided solid defense for the Hawks, clearing the Terrier offense out of Hawk defensive territory at crucial times between the 13:00-36:00 minute marks of the first half.

Saint Joseph's will hit the road this weekend to compete in the University of Kentucky Invitational from September 7-9. The Hawks will face off against host Kentucky on Friday. Match time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The team will return home to take on Rider on Saturday, September 15.