Men’s soccer wins, extends unbeaten streak

On Monday, Pitt freshman midfielder Matt Baker was named the Big East’s men’s soccer Rookie… On Monday, Pitt freshman midfielder Matt Baker was named the Big East’s men’s soccer Rookie of the Week, and senior goalkeeper Andy Jorgensen captured a spot on the Big East honor roll.

As if to validate those accolades and possibly make a push for this week’s honors as well, both men performed brilliantly in Pitt’s 1-0 victory against Xavier University last night.

Baker’s lone goal and Jorgensen’s consistently superb goalkeeping proved to be the difference in the home match against the Musketeers, which increased the Panthers’ unbeaten streak to four games.

Pitt is now within one game of .500 with an overall record of 3-4-2, an impressive feat considering the fact that the Panthers began the season 0-4-1. Xavier, on the other hand, dropped to 3-5-0 with the loss.

Pitt returns to Big East play when it travels to South Bend, Ind., to take on Notre Dame Saturday, Sept. 23, at 7 p.m.

The Musketeers came into Pittsburgh fresh off a heart-breaking 1-0 overtime defeat at the hands of Loyola-Chicago at home, and had a few early opportunities. But, as the game approached its 18th minute of play, Pitt caught a break.

Senior Shawn Wildman found a crease and quickly passed the ball to fellow senior Brendon Smith on the attack. Smith’s eye then caught a streaking Baker on the left side of the field. After receiving the pass, Baker deposited the ball in the net, just past the diving Xavier goalie.

Pitt would get another ideal scoring opportunity in the 55th minute of play when senior Keeyan Young kicked an uncontested shot toward the net. This time, however, Xavier goaltender Liam Curran was in position for the save and tipped the ball wide left. Despite the prime scoring opportunities, Pitt finished the day with nine shots – two less than Xavier’s 11.

The reigning Rookie of the Week, Baker, recorded his third goal of the season in the contest, and now leads the team with seven points. His honorary counterpart, Jorgensen, tallied two stops on the day and recorded his second shutout of the season.