By Ethan Schroeder, news correspondent
This weekend, the Huskies won in the quarterfinals of Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) tournament play. The first time the Northeastern men’s soccer team left Rudd Field in Elon, N.C. earlier in the season, the embarrassment of a 5-0 loss hung in the air. This time around, things went a little differently.
On Saturday, the Huskies flipped the script and defeated Elon University 2-0. The win gives the team its second birth in the CAA semifinals in the past three seasons.
In recent games, NU (8-10-1) has been unable to strike first or put together a strong start in its matches. Against Elon (9-6-4), the team came out with determination and aggression. Charged with 13 fouls in the game’s first 25 minutes, Northeastern showed that it was not planning on repeating its last matchup with the Phoenix.
“We definitely went out with intensity,” Head Coach Brian Ainscough said. “We wanted to show the other team that we were here to play. Last time [against Elon], the game was over by the first half and I think the team used that as motivation to start strong this time.”
Elon was able to create 18 shots over the course of the game, an impressive amount compared to Northeastern’s seven. It was the Huskies, however, who made the most of their chances.
In the 12th minute, NU struck first after a successful corner kick set piece was finished off by freshman forward Ackim Mpofu. Redshirt freshman midfielder Daniel Arvidsson sent the ball in to play. From there, freshman forward Frantzdy Pierrot headed the ball over to Mpofu, who buried it with a simple touch.
“It’s great when set piece plays like that work,” Mpofu said. “Daniel, Frantzdy and I just did what the coaches told us to do, and I was lucky enough to be there to chip it in when Frantzdy headed it over.”
Even once Northeastern got ahead, the team continued its energetic approach. The defense found itself in trouble on more than one occasion, but junior goalkeeper Dylan Faber was able to turn away any legitimate threats. Faber posted his second shutout of the season. He had six in the 2013 season.
In the 43rd minute, it was Northeastern again that managed to strike. Presented with an Elon turnover in the middle of the field, the Huskies quickly put together a counter attack against a limited number of Phoenix players. Once in the attacking third of the field, the ball eventually found the feet of freshman midfielder Brad Fountain. Fountain collected the pass from sophomore midfielder Marc Greenblatt and put a shot past senior goalkeeper Nathan Dean, putting the score at 2-0.
A minor scare for the Huskies occurred midway through the 45-minute period when Elon put together eight shots, but Northeastern’s defense was up to the task. Despite 13 shots in total from the Phoenix in the second half, Northeastern preserved its 2-0 lead with four saves from Faber and earned the victory.
The Huskies have now gone three games without a defeat, losing last to the College of William & Mary on Oct. 25. Mpofu believes the Huskies’ impressive play over the last two weeks can be attributed to their do-or-die mentality.
“Everyone on the team from the freshmen up to the seniors have been more pumped and more motivated to play recently,” Mpofu said. “The seniors obviously want to keep their last season going, and everyone else wants to keep playing with these guys. This year’s seniors are great, and we want to have as much time with them as possible.”
This Friday, Northeastern will travel to take on the top-seeded University of Delaware with a spot in the finals on the line. Having defeated Delaware 3-2 in their only matchup of the season thus far, the Huskies are confident in their chances this weekend.
“The players on this team are starting to ask, ‘why not us? Why can’t we win it this year?’” Ainscough said. “Going in with that attitude, they’ll surely have a chance.”
Photo courtesy Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics
