Men's Soccer vs. Oakland | Photo by Brett Hull | The Wright State Guardian
Wright State University (WSU) Men’s Soccer hit the road to face off against Marshall (MRSH), the toughest match the Raiders have faced in years.
It seemed like the Thundering Herd, the NCAA Champions last season and the currently ranked third in the country, would easily sweep past WSU and take an easy win for their fifth in a row.
As the clock started to wind down to the 90th minute and the game remained scoreless, the Herd began to panic. They found a goal in the 77th minute to carry themselves over the Raiders, but WSU made it difficult for them.
Staying in it
While MRSH dominated the shooting, taking 14 to WSU’s five, the Raider defense almost always was able to deflect the ball or make the shot less dangerous for Goalkeeper Sebastian Jimenez.
But, even when the shots were more dangerous from the third-best team in the country, Jimenez held his own against the Herd.
So far, Jimenez has totaled 46 saves for the Raiders this season, keeping WSU in games against tough opponents.
The entire defense was excellent on WSU’s side throughout the match, keeping the MRSH offense to only one goal in 90 minutes.
To keep that in perspective, four top-25 opponents the Herd faced earlier in the season allowed two or more goals against the Herd’s offense, showing just how well WSU played.
In every game that they have lost in HL play, they have never lost by more than one goal, always making sure the Raiders had a chance coming into the final few minutes.
The finisher
Freshman Augustin Iusem was the hero of the night for MRSH, hitting a volley into the bottom right corner in the 78th minute for a 0-1 Herd lead.
The score was Iusem’s first career goal, and in his first varsity game, but looked professional as he found a run into space in the six-yard box. With a defender on his back, he redirected a cross into the back of the net.
“He’s been exceptional with [The JV Team], and he’s deserved the call-up,” Chris Grassie, Head Coach for MRSH, said. “He just did so well, it looked like he’d been doing that this whole season.”
