The Eagles ended their homestand with a loss to No.12 Hoyas in the final minutes on Oct. 1. AU managed only one win in the last three home games.
“We gave the game away on a corner kick,” head coach Todd West said. “This game shows what we have to fix.”
Georgetown (7-2-1, 0-0-1 BE) drove down the field and earned a corner kick in the last five minutes. Hoya freshman defenseman Joshua Yaro kicked the ball past senior Eagle goalkeeper Billy Knutsen, assisted by Hoya Steve Neumann. This marked the first goal allowed by Knutsen in the last four games.
The first half was a back and forth battle, as neither team was able to capitalize. Freshman forward Dale Ludwig had two shots on goal in the first half, but was not able to get past Georgetown keeper Tomas Gomez. The AU defense managed to limit Georgetown to one shot on goal in the first half, which Knutsen saved.
In the second half, the Eagles (3-4-1, 1-0-0 PL) allowed the Hoyas to keep possession of the ball for extended periods of time. AU’s inability to stop Georgetown tired out players.
“We made some changes to try to keep guys fresh, we did a lot of defending and that can take its toll,” West said about how fatigue played a factor in the game.
The Eagles had many opportunities to score in the second half. Junior defender Conor Osborne broke through the Hoyas defense on the left side and reached the end of the field multiple times, although none of his attempts resulted in a goal. The Eagles allowed the Hoyas to seven shots on goal in the second half.
“If he gets his final service cleaned up a little he can be one of the top defenders in the league,” West said of Osborne.
Late in the second, half co-captain senior forward Cristobal Soto cleared a ball off his head just in front of the net and landed on his shoulder. West said he initially thought that he had separated his shoulder and came off the field momentarily. Soto was fine and was able to catch his breath and played the duration of the game.
AU plays its second Patriot League game on Oct. 5 against Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass.
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