Maryland men’s soccer records one shot on goal, falls to Wisconsin 1-0

The ball rose up inside the box as Jamie Lowell looked to get under it for the Terps and save his team in the 72nd minute of a scoreless tie.

However, Lowell landed awkwardly and picked up a seemingly serious injury. The ball dropped to the foot of Markie Hrvojevic, who made no mistake in burying the ball into the back of the net to take the 1-0 advantage. 

“It was a very unfortunate moment,” coach Sasho Cirovski said. “Again, it’s just one of those unforced errors that we have been uncharacteristically causing and as a result [we are] losing games.”

It was that kind of a game for Maryland men’s soccer (1-4-2, 0-2-1 Big Ten), who despite having the better of the ball could not pull ahead in a 1-0 loss to Wisconsin (4-2-3, 1-0-2).

For the second game in a row, the Terps began a game without much action on either side of the field, despite keeping the ball mostly on the Wisconsin half.

It was the 25th minute that the game saw its first big chance, when senior forward Stefan Copetti drove the ball forward into Wisconsin’s box, blowing by multiple defenders. Graduate midfielder Tim Bielic attempted a desperation slide tackle to stop the dangerous run, but missed the ball, instead chopping down Copetti and earning Maryland a penalty kick.

The Terps missed their first two penalty kick attempts of the season, taken by Copetti and freshman forward Luke van Heukelum.This time, they looked to go a different direction as sophomore forward Max Riley stepped up. 

However, the outcome would still prove the same, as Riley sent the ball flying over the crossbar and Maryland’s penalty woes continued, keeping the game knotted at zero.

“It’s been frustrating because all three guys that have missed a penalty have been terrific in training,” Cirovski said. “I’m not sure I’ve seen Max ever put it over the bar.” 

It would prove to be the only true chance of the entire half, with neither team able to put a shot on goal through 45 minutes. 

Throughout the half, both offenses were able to look threatening a handful of times but lacked the finishing touch to the attacks.

Finally, Wisconsin was able to acquire the game’s first shot on goal in the 50th minute with sophomore forward Mitchell Dryden connecting on a header. However, his shot had little power, making it a comfortable catch for senior goalkeeper Jamie Lowell. 

This started to get the gears turning for the Wisconsin offense, as the Badgers got a couple dangerous opportunities in a row past the 54th minute. The Badgers peppered the box with crosses, but the Maryland defense did well in clearing the ball and scrambling to block any shots Wisconsin got off, keeping the game level.

Past the 60th minute, both offenses were still looking for a breakthrough as neither side seemed capable of penetrating the other’s physical defensive play. 

In the 64th minute, one of the closest chances of the second half came in a fitting way. Wisconsin made a push up the left wing, looking for a low cross through the box that was blocked by a Maryland defender. However, the block gave the Terps a scare, as the ball just barely missed the near post.

Wisconsin’s chances would all come together in the 72nd minute with Hrvojevic’s goal, notching his team a 1-0 lead with the first score of his young career. Lowell had to be carted off the field following his injury. Sophomore goalkeeper Mikah Seger took his place

Maryland looked to get level minutes later with a big shot from sophomore defender Luca Costabile, but the shot headed straight for the gloves of junior goalkeeper Nate Crockford who comfortably caught the ball.

Maryland continued knocking on the door after the 80th minute. Freshman midfielder Kimani Stewart-Baynes forced a yellow card given to Bielic after a great run up the left wing. However, the corner Stewart-Baynes won was still not fruitful, as Wisconsin once again thwarted the Maryland chance. 

Stewart-Baynes continued to own the left side of the field in the following minutes, using his speed to blow by Wisconsin defenders and create chances in the counterattack. 

For the last five minutes, it was Maryland’s turn to pepper the box with crosses as Wisconsin desperately clung on to what would be the team’s first conference win of the season. 

Maryland now looks ahead toward Northwestern in what will be the team’s final chance to win in September. The Terps play the Wildcats at home on Friday.