The Army Black Knights tied the Eagles with no goals for either team, as AU struggled to click offensively. The Eagles showcased a strong, well-organized defensive performance, but they failed to notch a winning goal.
“We were a little off all day today, our first touch wasn’t quite right, and our passing wasn’t quite right either,” head coach Todd West said. “You know you’re a little off when you’re getting counter attacked 11 v. 10. It’s just details and discipline that were lacking.”
Army came out on the attack from the beginning of the game, and their strength, size and physicality presented challenges for the Eagles. The Black Knights created a couple of half-chances, but AU junior goalkeeper Dylan Hobert and the rest of the Eagle defense remained unfazed. Senior defender and captain Jordan Manley put in an outstanding performance in the first half, and he acted as a calming influence on a team that at times looked overwhelmed.
The Eagles (8-3-2, 2-2-1 PL) got their first chance on a corner kick in the 16th minute. Junior midfielder Liam Robley whipped the ball to sophomore forward Dale Ludwig, who was wide open but could not connect with the cross.
In the 20th minute, the Black Knights (5-4-4, 2-2-1 PL) almost took the lead when senior midfielder Sean Mogan’s cross just missed a couple of Army attackers.
With 11 minutes left in the half, AU’s versatile sophomore forward Jake Garcia launched a shot that found the hands of Army’s senior goalkeeper Winston Boldt. His play marked the final significant sequence of action before the halftime buzzer sounded.
The Eagles came out much stronger in the second half, pressing and forcing Army to make mistakes. The critical moment of the game came early in the second half when Army’s sophomore defender Tanner Vosvick was booked for this second yellow card of the day, resulting in a red card and an immediate ejection.
Vosvick’s red card forced Army to play a man down, and AU brought more players forward to try to capitalize on the man advantage. Ludwig dribbled through the Army defense immediately after Vosvick’s ejection, but he took one touch too many and the ball was easily saved by Boldt.
With around 14 minutes left in the game, the Eagles had their best chance of the game. Sophomore midfielder Panos Nakhid received the ball at midfield and began a sensational run, dribbling through many defenders and into the 18-yard box. He look through until Army senior goalkeeper Winston Boldt made a spectacular kick save to salvage the draw for the Black Knights. Boldt boasts a 0.79 goals against average, the best in the Patriot League.
AU controlled most of the possession through the second half, but they couldn’t find a match winner, and the game went into overtime.
Although AU drew multiple corner kicks in overtime, there were no clear chances and the game ended in a draw.
“There are 0-0 wins, and 0-0 loses,” West said. “We lost this game.”
The Eagles are now tied with Army Black Knights for third place in the Patriot League with five games left in the regular season. Four out of the five remaining games are key Patriot League matches that will decide the Eagles conference tournament qualification.
The Eagles look to get back in the win column next Saturday as they travel to Lafayette University in Easton, Pennsylvania. AU comes back to Reeves field on the Oct. 29 to take on Loyola University.
