After some uncertainty on whether or not Monday’s game would be played after part of the field flooded after Hurricane Irene, the men’s soccer team took the field for its season-opener against Providence.
The Bobcats saw an early 1-0 lead erased as Providence stormed back for a 2-1 victory at the Quinnipiac Soccer Field.
“We conceded the middle of the field and when you concede the middle of the field you’ve given up a lot to your opponents,” Quinnipiac head coach Eric Da Costa said. “Providence did a great job of taking that over and controlling the run of play and creating chances from them.”
With the game tied at 1, Providence was given a corner kick at 69:24 into the game. Midfielder Jimmy Petruccelli delivered the kick to forward Wilder Arboleda who headed it in for the go-ahead goal.
The Friars trailed late in the first half 1-0, but defenseman Brandon Adler found midfielder Guiseppe Guerriero who scorched the ball past freshman goalkeeper Borja Angoitia for the equalizer.
The Bobcats struck first when freshman Nils von der Heide scored his first collegiate goal on a header from Philip Suprise 23:36 into the game.
“[Von der Heide] did well. He started off playing really well and we have some people playing that position,” Da Costa said. “Ola [Ogonjobi] came in and did an excellent job holding the ball up and being dangerous in creating some opportunities. So there’s definitely competition there.”
Von der Heide and Ogonjobi are just two of 11 freshmen on this season’s team. Despite the large amount of newcomers, Da Costa is not going to use youth as an excuse for the team.
“Youth is what it is. If you’re good, you’re good. Whether you’re a freshman or you’re a senior, if you can play, you can play. We don’t take into account youth as much and we’ve told guys since day one,” Da Costa said. “We’re not using being a young team, that cliché, as a crutch. We have talented players who have come in and we need them to step up and perform. If we don’t, then we’re going to struggle. And today we didn’t have good performances from enough players.”
The Bobcats continue their season Thursday at Boston College at 4 p.m.
