The No. 5 University of Akron men’s soccer team suffered its first setback of the season in a 2-1 double-overtime defeat at No. 23 St. John’s Friday night at Belson Stadium.
Late in the second half, with the score tied at one, the Zips (2-1-0) appeared to catch a break when junior Saad Abdul-Salaam went down in the box while attempting a shot. But no penalty was awarded and the teams went into overtime.
Ironically, it was a penalty kick that did UA in as Red Storm junior Tim Parker earned it in the 106th minute of play and senior Jummy Mulligan tucked it away to hand the Zips their first defeat since Sept. 9 of last season.
Eric Stevenson broke a scoreless tie in the 71st minute with his first goal of the year to give the Zips the lead. Ismail Seremba, who came on in the 69th minute, slipped the ball to Stevenson, who fired a laser from 20 yards into the back left corner of the net from straight on.
It was the second consecutive match Seremba has made an impact as a second-half substitute after assisting the game-winning goal in the 58th minute against Furman last weekend in South Carolina.
But STJ (2-1-0) answered just three minutes later when Jelani Williams set up Josh Godec with a cross from the right side of the field. Godec finished from close range to extend the match.
It was a tough defeat for an Akron side that dominated the large majority of regulation. The Zips allowed just a single shot in the first half and only four in total when the Red Storm found the equalizer in the 74th minute.
Reinaldo Brenes and Aodhan Quinn, who created a number of scoring opportunities for the Zips, each finished with four shots apiece as Akron out-shot St. John’s, 12-10, overall.
Both teams spent the first 15 minutes of the match feeling each other out. But a pair of Quinn shots within a five-minute period sparked the Zips’ attack. It was a very active half for Quinn in all as the senior nearly sprung Stevenson and Brenes for goals and put a shot of his own on frame in the first 45 minutes.
Akron’s best chance early on may have come during the 28th minute when Louis Cross sent a through ball into the middle of the field where Quinn redirected it to Stevenson, who was streaking down the right flank. But before he could get a shot off, the keeper came off his line to smother the play.
Then, right before the break, Quinn chipped a ball over the Red Storm’s back line that landed in front of Brenes. The Hermann Trophy candidate ran it down, took contact from a trio of STJ defenders and went down in the box but the referee said play on.
Each team had a single shot in the first overtime period but both were quality. Mulligan got past his mark and had a go from distance early on but his shot sailed high. Brenes was on the receiving end of an Akron counter attack but his curling shot from the near left flank was just wide of the far post.
The Zips will next make a short trip across the New York/New Jersey border to play at Rutgers Sunday, starting at 1 p.m. ET.
