The University of Dallas men’s soccer team wrapped up their home schedule this past weekend against conference opponents Texas Lutheran University and Southwestern University.
A rainy Friday afternoon held a home loss against the Bulldogs of Texas Lutheran by a score of 1-0. A header from Texas Lutheran in the 34th minute of the first half proved to be the difference, and the Crusaders were not able to equalize. Dallas outshot TLU 21-10, including 12 shots on goal.
“Obviously the loss is not what we were looking for,” said sophomore midfielder Tomas DePetris. “The conditions came into play. I don’t think it was a bad game; it was just unlucky.”
Senior midfielder Andrew Ciancone and sophomore midfielder Chase Reynolds led UD in shots with five and four, respectively.
In his first start of the season, sophomore goalkeeper Caleb Strange saved two of the three TLU shots on goal.
“To let up a goal on that ratio is a little tough,” said Head Coach David Hoffmann. “We definitely had our opportunities.”
Following the loss, the Crusaders headed into Sunday’s senior day match against Southwestern with something to prove.
“We knew we had to win [against Southwestern] for sure,” said DePetris.
Southwestern opened the scoring in the first half with a goal on a penalty kick by Pirates forward Alex Newell. Dallas answered with a goal from junior forward Hunter Haugland, who scored off a pass from DePetris six minutes into the second half.
The score remained tied until the 68th minute when DePetris netted the eventual game winner off a free kick.
“It felt amazing,” said DePetris. “Overall, it just felt great to be with the team again having fun.”
Senior goalkeeper Jacob Chimento earned his first career win, only allowing one goal on 19 shots. Haugland led the Crusaders in shots with six.
“It certainly fits the narrative, last home game of the year it’s exactly how you draw it up,” said Hoffmann. “At the end of the day, beating the number four ranked team in the western United States is a good result.”
The results bring Dallas to a 8-5 overall record, a 7-4 record against conference opponents, and a 5-2 home record.
“We went into the match down three guys who are normal starters,” said Hoffmann. “Across the board we responded pretty well, especially Tomas, obviously.”
Dallas will face TLU and Southwestern back-to-back once again this upcoming weekend. UD travels to Southwestern on Friday, Oct. 26, and will finish the regular season against TLU on Sunday, Oct. 28.
“We know they’re going to come at us hard,” said De Petris. “We have to take it one game at a time.”
Dallas will travel to Southwestern for the SCAC Tournament beginning on Nov. 2.
“The guys are all thinking about positioning as it relates [to] the conference tournament,” said Hoffmann. “It’s a situation in which a big advantage comes with being in the top two slots.”
