Oct. 24, 2009
WEXFORD, Pa. – A Michael Rose (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) goal in the 48th minute was the difference as the Notre Dame men’s soccer team defeated Pittsburgh, 1-0, in BIG EAST Blue Division play on Saturday afternoon at North Allegheny High School.
The contest was switched from a 1:00 p.m. start to 4:00 p.m. and moved to North Allegheny High School due to inclement weather in the Pittsburgh area. North Allegheny High School features an artificial turf field.
Notre Dame (9-6-1, 7-3-0) out shot Pittsburgh 8-5 in the first half, yet the match was scoreless at the intermission. The Fighting Irish held a 16-8 advantage in shots for the entire game. Notre Dame also had the game’s only five corner kicks.
“It was a good win for us,” said Irish head coach Bobby Clark. “It was a brilliant first half for us. We were playing into a strong wind and on a narrow field, but I thought we handled that very well. I don’t think we could have played much better in that half. We had three or four good chances.”
It did not take the Irish long to convert an opportunity in the second half as Rose knocked in a cross from Michael Thomas (Olathe, Kan./St. Thomas Aquinas) at the 47:05 mark of the match. That was the first career goal for the sophomore midfielder. Thomas, a senior midfielder, has a team-high five assists this season. Junior forward Jeb Brovsky (Lakewood, Colo./Green Mountain) also collected an assist on the play.
“We had the wind at our back in the second half and we scored early,” added Clark. “It was nice to see Michael Rose get his first goal. But after we scored, we kind of let them hang around. We were hanging on in the last five minutes or so as they were banging the ball in on us.”
Senior goalkeeper Philip Tuttle (Hooksett, N.H./Brewster Academy) made one save to improve his record to 6-3 on the season. His counterpart Zack Matthews had five saves on the day for Pittsburgh (1-12-2, 0-8-1).
The Fighting Irish will conclude their three-game road trip at Michigan State on Wednesday, Oct. 28. Game time against the Spartans is slated for 3:00 p.m. (ET).
North Allegheny High School • Wexford, Pa.
October 24, 2009
Notre Dame (9-6-1, 7-3-0) 0 1 – 1
Pittsburgh (1-12-2, 0-8-1) 0 0 – 0
ND: Michael Rose (Michael Thomas, Jeb Brovsky) 47:05
Shots: ND 8-8 – 16, UP 3-5 – 8
Corner Kicks: ND 2-3 – 5, UP 0-0 – 0
Saves: ND 1 (Philip Tuttle – 90:00 – 0 ga – 1 sv – W); UP 5 (Zack Matthews – 90:00 – 1 ga – 5 svs – L)
Fouls: ND 8, UP 6
Offsides: ND 0, UP 3