Men’s soccer nets first win of season

Even before the start of the match Monday night, the Pitt men’s soccer team was dealt another… Even before the start of the match Monday night, the Pitt men’s soccer team was dealt another blow when starting goalie Jordan Marks was injured in pre-game warm-ups.

Not having secured a victory yet, this could have been a big problem.

Well, not so much.

Senior goalie Eric Barnes got his first win as a Panther when Pitt outlasted Saint Joseph’s, 2-1, on an overtime goal by Matt Baker. Captain Matt Langton also scored for the Panthers. The triumph improved Pitt’s record to 1-4-1.

“They really deserved to win,” head coach Joe Luxbacher said. “We really dominated the game.”

Dominated is right in every respect except the score. For the match, Pitt outshot the Hawks 23-3, while controlling the offensive pace decisively.

Barnes wasn’t too busy but performed when he needed to. He gained much needed experience in case Marks is not able to go in their next match Friday at Big East opponent Syracuse. Barnes was formerly part of the George Mason squad before transferring.

Marks’ status for Friday is unknown.

“He stowed his fingers, his hand looked really bad,” Luxbacher said. “He couldn’t even catch the ball. We’ll have to see how he comes along.”

The offense was the real story of the match. Pitt created several chances, but for the first half was contained by Saint Joe’s goalkeeper Bryan Benedict.

The Hawks struck first, scoring on a 15th-minute goal by Greg Dusing, following a foul that led to a free kick. Otherwise, Pitt outplayed Saint Joseph’s and even outshot the Hawks, 10-2, in the half.

The early deficit could have led to a breakdown, a here-it-goes-again belief for a team still looking for its first victory. But Pitt came out firing and inspired in the second half.

The half was only four minutes old when Pitt nearly scored on a Ryan Brode attempt, but a good defensive stop kept the score the same. Not to be denied, Brode attacked again a few minutes later, slamming a shot that was saved by Benedict. But Langton was ready for the rebound and netted it for a tied match.

Pitt added 11 more shots in the remaining time, but could not push it past Saint Joe’s for the winner. It seemed inevitable that Pitt would break through, but it didn’t occur until the first overtime period.

In the 91st minute, Brode produced yet another opportunity with a hard shot that was deflected right to Baker. He buried it in the back of the net to ensure that long-awaited first victory.

The two goal scorers for the Panthers have been hot. Both Langton and Baker were honored for their play in last week’s Pitt Invitational Tournament by being named to the All-Tournament team. Their contributions have sparked the club to play their best soccer of the season throughout the last few games.

Luxbacher, though, praised the entire team’s improvement.

“We played really well the last two or three games, now we finally got the result we wanted,” he said. “Our defense played really well. We’re not giving up a lot of chances.

“We created a lot of chances too, now we just have to finish on them.”

Pitt now has to start dealing with Big East foes, beginning Friday at Syracuse. The Panthers will stay in New York for the weekend, facing St. John’s on Sunday.