Against a Tulsa squad receiving votes in the national poll, the University of Akron men’s soccer team won its third game in a row Friday night, shutting out the Golden Hurricane by the score of 3-0 in front of 2,078 fans at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field.
Following three well-defended shots in their defensive end right out of the gate, none that seemed to pose an immediate threat on junior goalkeeper Jake Fenlason, the Zips took the ball downfield and began their attack on the Tulsa defense, a relentless effort that proved victorious quickly in the first half.
With a shot by freshman Sam Gainford in the left side of the box, Hurricane goalkeeper Jake McGuire made a save on the move, deflecting the ball toward the feet of junior Sean Sepe. Sepe pulled the ball back and tried to kick it in, but his shot was instantly saved by a diving McGuire as well. With the ball back on the ground by Sepe’s side, the forward one-touched it to the back of the net beyond two Tulsa defenders in the 13th minute to put Akron (3-2-1) on the board.
Sepe, after scoring six goals at St. John’s before transferring to UA, had two great chances on net last weekend against UCF, though was finally able to capitalize tonight with his first goal of the year.
“It was great; it was a long time waiting,” Sepe explained following the match. “I’m happy I got the goal. I’m happy I got to help the team win. It just feels great.”
The Zips offensive game continued to pound the Hurricane defense, as Sepe played a ball in from senior Saad Abdul-Salaam just 43 seconds later, taking a shot that was saved from the right wing. Gainford and sophomore Adam Najem each had oppoerunities in the following ten minutes, both providing near misses for Akron who seemingly had a strong hold on possessions throughout the contest.
As the Zips charged forward, head coach Jared Embick commented on what is pushing Akron forward following their rough start to the season, saying, “We’ve moved some things around to find some balance with this group and it looks like we’ve found that balance.”
Following three Hurricane fouls, the final one coming in the box as a defender knocked down freshman Richie Laryea as he was moving upfield, junior Victor Souto took a penalty shot for the Zips, knocking it in in the 30th minute on the ground to the right side of McGuire. Souto’s goal, also his first on the season, was the second made penalty kick on two attempts this season for Akron, as freshman Stuart Holthusen knocked one in at USF in the team’s second game, marking their first goal of the year as a unit.
“There’s confidence now in a lot of these guys, and it’s coming at the right time,” Embick noted.
Akron wasn’t yet done on the night, as Holthusen scored one of his own in the 39th minute, taking a pass from Gainford at the top of the box and after a single dribble past his defender, netting it on a laser shot to the near left post.
“This team just always needed time,” Embick went on to explain. “We have 14 new players, that’s half our roster. Our style of play involves everybody understanding their role and they see what we’re looking to do.”
The two squads battled for possessions in the second half, as Akron took another nine shots and attempted five corner kicks in the period. Neither team would find the back of the goal, however, as the game concluded with the final score of 3-0.
“We came out, created some chances, and put some goals away early,” Embick added. “Pleased to shut out a good team and come out with another win.”
Fenlason played all 90 minutes in net, making six saves and posting his second consecutive shutout after the Zips defeated Hartford 2-0 last Sunday. Fenlason made multiple key saves in different areas of the box tonight, including one in the 10th minute at the by Abe Matamoros, as he charged to the top of the box with his defenders cleared of the ball and swept down to block Matamoros’s shot.
Embick expounded on Fenlason’s performance thus far, saying, “He made a big one in the first half, when it was 1-0, he saved a breakaway. That’s the type of form that got him into the lineup at the end of last year. Now you guys are seeing a pretty good goalkeeper back there.”
Using the same starting lineup coming into each of the past three games that concluded in victory, the Zips have themselves in a groove that has brought home three straight home victories as they take to the road this coming week and face Ohio State in Columbus on Wednesday night before traveling down to North Carolina to battle with Wake Forest the following Tuesday.
