M. Soccer | Early goal, a 'shock' to Healy, ends Penn's shutout streak

Last week, Penn men's soccer coach Rudy Fuller guaranteed that his team would give up a goal at some point this season.

It took the Quakers only three minutes and 25 seconds into yesterday's 2-2 tie with Temple to prove him right.

Drew Healy's seven-game, 673-minute shutout streak came undone when defender James Suevo hit a header into the back of the net.

"It was kind of a shock coming a couple of minutes in," Healy said.

In a game that was supposed to be smooth sailing from start to finish for the Quakers, they came out sluggish and unable to keep up with Temple's breakneck pace. It was Penn that looked nocturnal, not the Owls.

"We weren't ready for the start of the game," Fuller said. "We got taught a lesson today in the opening 20 or 30 minutes."

And it was quite a lesson.

Penn (5-0-3) was able to eventually force overtime, but there was a definite distinction between the first and second halves.

The "host" Owls (4-3-1) - who were wearing their home whites despite rain forcing the game to Rhodes Field - struck hard and struck early, netting their two goals in the first seven minutes.

Once Suevo scored, frustration was evident on the faces of Penn's defenders, who were unable to give a coordinated effort.

Sloppy passing and poor shooting characterized the rest of the first half. Penn's forwards looked tired. Penn's midfielders looked tired. Even Penn's Quaker mascot looked tired.

The Red and Blue couldn't react to the Owls' physical style of play. Temple drew four yellow cards; Penn drew two.

"Any time you have a Philly game . it's always going to be a little bit more physical," Temple coach David MacWilliams said.

The Quakers started their Kafka-esque metamorphosis near the end of the first half.

Senior forward Mike Klein scored with 3:22 left in the first to draw the game to a more manageable 2-1.

"It felt like we were back in the game," Klein said.

After the break, the Quakers matched Temple's physicality with their own, ratcheted up their defensive intensity and began attacking the Owls' goal with a vengeance.

A header from senior Ryan Porch in the 66th minute evened the score at two and put the Quakers in the driver's seat.

Healy made the necessary saves in the two overtimes, but Temple's Brett Mollon was even more impressive, stopping a short-range shot on a rebound.

As the Quakers ready for their match with Villanova on Wednesday, Fuller knows that they can't rely on miraculous comebacks.

"It clearly wasn't Penn at the start," Fuller said. "And we paid for it."

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