Freshman forward Anthony Macchione connected on the game-winning goal in the 79th minute to propel the Akron men’s soccer team to a 2-1 over Bowling Green to its 11th MAC Championship title. Both teams had to scratch and claw their way in the MAC semi-finals to reach this point of the tournament. After an exciting overtime win over West Virginia on Friday, the Bowling Green Falcons could not muster enough offense to overcome the high powered Akron attack.
In a true showing of offensive class, the Akron Zips dominated both possession and shots during the entire match. In the first half alone the Zips outshot the Falcons 13-3 and 22-7 over the duration of the match. It was a dominant show of speed on the wings that kept Zips fans on the edge of their seats most of the match. Sam Gainford and Sean Sepe used superior technical skills to free themselves of the BGSU defenders and torment BG keeper Nick Landsberger all game. Gainford had a game-high six shots on goal, followed by freshman midfielder Richie Laryea who had four.
One of the big moments of the first half for the Zips came in the 29th minute following a combination of play by Gainford and Sepe.
Sepe took the ball down the left side of the pitch and worked his way through the Bowling Green defense and was able to put a powerful shot towards the goal. Off of the deflection, Gainford looked to get a shot of his own off the volley attempt.
With leg in motion, Gainford was taken out just feet outside the 18 yard box. This led to an Akron free kick by Adam Najem, who has been playing some of the best soccer of his career the past few weeks. However, nothing would come of the opportunity as the Zips sent the ball over the goal.
Bowling Green did manage to get off a few shots of their own in part to some poor turnovers by Akron goalkeeper Jake Fenlason. On multiple occasions, the junior from California would go to pass the ball, but either over or under shot his target. A prime example occurred in the 7th minute of play. After receiving the ball, Fenlason attempted to send the ball out towards the deep midfield, but ended up feeding the ball to Joe Sullivan of the Falcons. It required a diving save to the keeper’s right, just getting a glove on the ball to force the ball out of bounds.
Entering the second half of play with the score tied 0-0, it would take a few minutes for players to get warmed up on the pitch and get play moving again. In the 67th minute the game would break wide open for both teams. Bowling Green would feed the ball down the right near side of the pitch, where Akron defender Clint Caso would take down a Bowling Green player outside the box. In what looked to be a potential clear path foul, the referee rewarded the senior with a yellow card. Off the free kick Jacob Roth was able to bend the ball past the three-man Akron wall and into the back of the net. Akron keeper Jake Fenlason dove as far as he could, but the ball came in with too much pace and ended up sneaking into the right side of the net.
It didn’t take long for the Zips to get on the board either. A mere 28 seconds ticked off the clock before Akron would get their chance to put things level. Off a quick restart of play following the goal, the Zips had pushed the ball into the attacking third, when Clint Caso, who had just committed the foul on the opposite end of the pitch was taken down inside the box. Immediately the extremely energetic official pointed to the spot. In the high-pressure situation at hand, nobody else but captain Adam Najem stepped into the box. Following the official blowing his whistle, Najem bounced in his spot for what seemed like an eternity before launching forward. With the goalkeeper stuck in his spot, Najem powered the ball into the back of the net. In what was an extremely long minute, BGSU had pulled ahead, gained momentum, given up a penalty and a goal, and then lost momentum. Certainly a crazy 60 seconds.
After play slowed down for the next period of time, the Zips were finally able to get back on the board. With the Zips seeming to have lost some steam in the cold, head coach Jared Embick inserted Macchione into the lineup. In the 79th minute, Macchione ran near post after making eye contact with senior Saad Abdul-Salaam, who then placed a perfect ball at the feet of the freshman. Shooting initially, the BG keeper was able to punch out the ball, but directly at Macchione’s feet again. With composure he calmly placed the ball back into the net to give the Zips the lead. It was the freshman’s third goal, which have all come off the bench.
For coach Embick he was proud of the way his team played on the field.
“I thought the first half we played really well. The second half the goal we gave up was a counter off a corner kick, its disappointing but I think you saw the young team and their character and we are starting to mature and find their stride, and a great performance overall.”
For the Zips they now will wait for the NCAA selection committee tomorrow to draw who and when and where the Zips will next play. With an RPI of 27, it is likely the Zips will have one home match before having to go out and face a team on the road. With the young roster finally gelling under coach Embick the Zips are not a team to take lightly come tournament time.
Update: The Akron men’s soccer team learned its draw for the 2014 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship on Monday, as the Zips (13-6-1) will travel to Ohio State (9-7-4) on Thursday, Nov. 20, in the opening round of the 48-team field. Game time at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, has yet to be set.
