In the game of soccer, sometimes a team can play well, but still not come up with the win.
All it takes is one or two goals to end a season.
For the men’s soccer team, two tough goals were all it took to lose 2-0 to Towson in the second round of the NCAA tournament on Wednesday.
The Stags fell behind right before the half 1-0 and later fell behind another goal in the second half.
Fairfield battled throughout the entire game, but could not find the chances to convert on the opportunites that they did have in order to win.
The Stags did not back down and Head Coach Carl Rees was pleased with their effort.
“This team never quit. It is a sign of the good personality and character that we have. They took the high road and did not back down,” he said.
Towson head coach Frank Olszewski said of the Stags, “You have to credit the competitiveness of Fairfield. They were a championship caliber team and deserved to be here. They played fantastic at UConn and we knew that we would have our hands full with them, and we did.”
Senior co-captain Mike Troy was emotional after the game, saying, “It was rewarding to have come this far. Towson played well and came up with the win and we wish them good luck as they play either Wake [Forest] or Hofstra in the next round.”
Towson spent most of the first half playing in its offensive zone or battling for it at mid field.
Just one minute into the game, the Tigers brought the ball down the field and into the Fairfield zone. Tom Skara ’08 slid down and blocked a shot to prevent Towson from scoring an early goal.
The Tigers had another chance just a few minutes later, as Fairfield fouled a Towson player outside the box, forcing Fairfield goal keeper J.P. Francini `08 to make his first save of the game.
After the Tigers failed to convert on two more chances: One which was again blocked by Skara, who was all over the field defensively from the start, and another which was sent just wide of the goal on a header from Towson forward Angus Burke.
Twenty-seven minutes into the half, senior co-captain Alex Cunliffe sent a pass across the field to Steve Desmond `08 who put his head on the ball, putting it past charging goalkeeper Billy Chiles.
Christian Uy `10 could not catch up to the ball and take advantage of the open net, as Towson senior defender Andrew Marshall cleared the ball away.
One minute later, Sam Bailey `08 took a pass from Uy and went on goal, past the Towson defense. He went down inside the box as Chiles charged at him, but no foul was called.
After Fairfield attacked fiercely for 10 minutes, Towson brought the ball back into the Stags end of the field. Skara cleared the ball out of bounds and the Tigers were given a corner kick.
After Fairfield put the ball out of bounds twice more, the Tigers received their third corner in three minutes. This time Sean Cunningham sent the ball at Francini, who went up to catch it, but allowed the ball to slip threw his hands.
Freshman Kevin Ruck got his head on the ball for Towson and put it into the back of the net to give the Tigers the 1-0 lead.
Fairfield could not retaliate as the half winded down and headed into the locker room trailing by one. The Stags were out shot 6-0 in the first half and Francini came up with one save.
“The timing of the goal right before halftime, had an impact, but there was no panic or desperation,” said Rees.
The Stags began the second half quickly, as Mike Troy `07 recorded the team’s first shot of the game, on a long blast from outside the box. Chiles went up to make the save and grabbed it right before Cunliffe flew in, attempting to head the ball into the net.
Eight minutes into the second half, Pat Healey blasted a shot from inside the box at Francini, who came up with a terrific save off his chest.
However, the ball did not roll clear and no Fairfield defender was in the position to clear it out, leaving Nino Mangione an open lane to the goal. Mangione kicked it past the sprawling Francini to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead.
Fairfield’s best chance of the second half came after Bailey was taken down in the box. Cunliffe stepped up to take the penalty kick for the Stags. Over the season, Cunliffe had converted both penalty kicks he had taken, both in the Fairfield win over Yale.
This time was different. Chiles guessed correctly and dove to the left, blocking Cunliffe’s shot.
The ball deflected high into the air and the Stags took two more shots, one was blocked by Chiles again and the other went over the net and out of play.
The Stags brought their entire team up to midfield for the final 20 minutes of the game, leaving a lot of one on one or one on two opportunities for Towson.
Francini and the defense, especially Skara, stayed strong for the Stags, doing their best to keep the game close. Francini recorded six saves in the second half.
Rees believed that the fatigue never set in for the Stags,
“The game got stretched, but we have great fitness, so we were prepared to play for 90 minutes. Tactically, we started gambling and that left us exposed in the back,” said Rees.
In the end, the Stags left the field muddy and disappointed. They had six shots during the second half and could not convert on any. Chiles was solid for the Tigers, as he has been all season, picking up his sixth shutout of the year.
The Stags finished the season with a record of 15-7-1 and as the first team in Fairfield sports history to advance into the second round of the NCAA tournament, in any sport.
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