Men's Soccer Draws With Hartford, 1-1, In Season-Opener

Peter Ayers

THE BASICS:

Score: Holy Cross 1, Hartford 1 (2OT)
Records: Holy Cross (0-0-1); Hartford (0-0-1)
Location: Linda Johnson Smith Soccer Stadium (Worcester, Mass.)
Date: Friday, Aug. 29, 2014
Time: 7:05 p.m.
The Lead: Freshman Arno Rupp (Wolfsberg, Austria) scored his first collegiate goal as the Holy Cross men's soccer team tied Hartford, 1-1, in the season-opener for both teams on Friday night in non-conference action at the Linda Johnson Smith Soccer Stadium.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Hartford had the first opportunity of the game when Udi Cohen took a shot from six yards out that went just over the right corner of the goal in the third minute of the game.
• Holy Cross sophomore Joey DeVivo (Ridgefield, Conn.) took a free kick from 22 yards out that was blocked by Hartford, while junior Eddie Viscount's (Smithtown, N.Y.) follow up shot then went wide in the 20th minute. 
• The Crusaders tallied the first goal at 56:37 when sophomore Peter Ayers (Lewisberg, Pa.) sent a through pass to Rupp  in the box who then placed a shot into the right corner to score his first collegiate goal from 12 yards out.
• Hartford answered at 64:41 with a goal from senior Omar Tall assisted by Cohen. A shot by Cohen ricocheted off the right post and bounced to Tall who knocked the ball into the net to even the score at 1-1. 
• Tall received a red card at 1:49 left in the second half giving the Crusaders the man-advantage the rest of the way. 
• Senior Will Bowers (Raleigh, N.C.) took a header from inside the box, but was caught by goalie David MacKinnon with 7:30 remaining in the first overtime.
• Ayers then headed the ball from inside the box with :25 seconds remaining in the first overtime but the shot was saved by MacKinnon.
• Neither team was able to score as the game ended in a 1-1 tie.

COACH KOOLMAN ON THE TEAM'S PERFORMANCE: "I think the first half we played very well," said Holy Cross head coach Marco Koolman. "The second half we dropped off a little bit but overall for the first game of the season I think it was a great performance. It was a collective team effort and every player bought into what we wanted to do. We created opportunities and just kept pushing but just were not able to score in overtime. This was a great start. The framework is there and I think we are in good shape."  

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Junior goalie Kevin Wright (McKinney, Texas) recorded one save, while MacKinnon recorded five saves for the Hawks. 
• Holy Cross held the advantage in shots (17-11) and shots on goal (6-2).

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• Rupp tallied the Crusaders' first goal of the season and his first collegiate goal. 
• Ayers recorded his first collegiate point with the assist on Rupp's goal. 

 UP NEXT:

• The Crusaders return to action on Friday, Sept. 5, when they travel to Providence, R.I., to take on Providence at Glay Field at 7:00 p.m.

KEEP CONNECTED:

• There are numerous ways to stay connected with the Holy Cross men's soccer team. Follow the Crusaders on Twitter @Crusader_Soccer, on Facebook and on Instagram. You can also keep updated with the team through its season blog by going here. You can also get the latest news and results on the team sent directly to your e-mail. To sign up for e-mail alerts go here: http://www.goholycross.com/list-signup.

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