Continuing on a hot streak after three straight wins at home over the past two weeks, the University of Akron men’s soccer team won its fourth straight tonight, taking a second lead in the 35th minute on a goal by junior Sean Sepe and never looking back en route to a 3-1 victory at Ohio State on Wednesday night.
The Zips opened up the night with the ball heavily in their offensive zone, as Sepe and freshman Sam Gainford looked determined from the get-go to put Akron on the board early. After a scramble for possession in the box in the 10th minute, Sepe tapped the ball to Gainford who took a shot on goal, covered up by Buckeyes goalie Alex Ivanov. Less than two minutes later, Sepe took a pass from senior Saad Abdul-Salaam and booted a shot to Ivanov’s left side, though he came up with a diving save.
The pair capitalized in the 12th minute when Sepe played a ball across the post to the front of the net, where Gainford slipped by his defender and easily dropped it on goal to give the Zips a 1-0 lead.
Gainford, with two assist so far this season, scored his first goal in an Akron uniform after coming close in recent games but not quite hitting his target until tonight. On his rising performances, head coach Jared Embick commented, “Sam is a really good player and has been excellent the last few games. He can score and pass but most importantly he works for the team. I am happy his work was rewarded with a goal and assist tonight.”
Ohio State returned the favor less than five minutes later as a slip by an Akron defender beside the goal allowed Danny Jensen to pull the ball into the box and shoot it beyond junior goalkeeper Jake Fenlason, who he had nailed down in a one-on-one situation, to net the equalizer.
The Zips kept the momentum in their favor, shooting at a high pace with 10 shots in the first half as both Abdul-Salaam and freshman Richie Laryea both took quality shots on a line before UA would get on the board once again.
With the ball headed toward the middle third of the field under control by the Buckeyes, freshman Stuart Holthusen made a brisk swipe at the ball, snatching it from the opposition and sending it upfield. Sepe retrieved the pass, made a quick play by his defender and shot it by a diving Ivanov who made a quick tip of it before the ball found the back of the net for his second goal in two games. This score gave Akron a 2-1 lead in the 35th minute.
“I’m just working hard trying to do whatever I can to help the team win,” Sepe mentioned after the match.
Tacking on a rare double assist in the 76th minute, the Zips made another sweep of the Ohio State defensive zone as Holthusen pushed a pass up the right side for Gainford who lifted the ball to the front of the goal where sophomore Adam Najem was able to finish it, heading in his second goal of the year and giving Akron a 3-1 lead.
The Buckeyes’ best opportunity to mount a comeback in this match came in the 83rd minute on a penalty kick. Liam Doyle, kicking with his dominant left foot, jolted the ball to Fenlason’s left side, as the San Diego native made the decisive stop to defend UA’s two-goal lead.
Fenlason played a stellar 90 minutes in goal for the Zips, making four saves and helping to move the game along as Akron worked to hold their lead for good. With multiple stops at the top of the box as well as a diving save in the 43rd minute by Jensen after junior defender Andrew Souderslost hold of him entering the box.
“Jake is just getting better and better,” Embick noted. “We have a lot of confidence in him. He is very reliable and has come up with some big saves at key moments.”
Holding on for the 3-1 victory, Akron won their fourth straight match after starting the season with an 0-2-1 roadtrip in which up to seven freshmen made appearances in the starting lineup and the team was establishing their connections.
I am happy with the performance,” Embick affirmed. “To win at Ohio State and score three goals, you have to play well. We know how much this game means to our school and fans. Our guys were determined to win to make our fans and school proud with their play and I think we did that.”
With 14 new players on this year’s squad, the coaching staff has found a happy medium on gamedays, starting four freshman in this game and using the same lineup for the past four contests.
“I think it speaks that we found the right balance between attack and defense with the whole team,” Embick indicated, referring to the consistent lineups he has been sending out on the field during the team’s winning streak. “[Brad] Ruhaak and [Bryce] Cregan have been an excellent combo. But it all ties together; when we attack well, we defend well, and we defend well by attacking at a high level.”
Gainford, on the impact a steady lineup has on the players’ mentality, remarked that, “It helps because you get used to playing with each other, but we know we can’t take starting for granted because there’s lots of guys on the bench that want to play and could step in for us.”
“We’re finally coming together as a team,” Sepe continued. “We learned a lot during the first couple of games and now we are feeling confident.”
Embick finished the night off with his thoughts on the team’s recent play, as Akron has outscored its opponents 6-1 in the past two games: “I think the last two games we wanted to improve our performance and play Akron soccer. We know we can win if we play the way we are capable of.”
With this weekend off, the Zips travel down to North Carolina next week to take on Wake Forest on Tuesday, Sept. 30 to wrap up the month.
