It rained goals on Rhodes Field.
On Tuesday, Penn men’s soccer (2-1-1) met Delaware (3-2-3) in an exciting match that ended 3-3. For the Quakers, the match continued a strong start to the season as the team gears up for conference play.
A busy first half
The match started hot, with both teams scrambling for possession. Within the first 20 minutes, both teams had taken a combined five shot attempts, all failing to connect until junior midfielder Michael Howard slotted a left-footer into the bottom right, igniting the Quaker fans.
Delaware responded quickly, launching an aggressive defensive tactic, which prevented the Quakers from scoring another goal. Six minutes after Howard’s goal, Delaware defender Sean Smith cut through Penn’s defense, landing a shot into the corner of the goal to tie the match with 19 minutes left in the first half.
Despite several attempts to get a shot off, Penn’s offense was unable to convert. A foul by senior defender Joaquin Niehenke created the opportunity for Delaware defender Emmett Kershner to score. Tension built as the Blue Hens gained the lead with 15 minutes left on the clock.
This pressure was no worry for junior forward Marco Bottene, who answered Kershner’s goal immediately, proving why he was named Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week. Bottene got the lead on his defenders and sailed the ball cleanly into the net after an assist from sophomore midfielder Adam Ambrus-Aikelin.
“I think a lot of it is the confidence and belief I have in myself, and that stems from having experiences throughout springs and falls,” Bottene said. “I definitely want to just continue to stack performances individually and [I] hope the team can also come together and keep stacking good performances one on top of another.”
Penalty after penalty
With the score tied and 45 minutes left in the match, the Quakers headed into the second half optimistic and ready to give the visitors everything they had.
The second half saw a whopping 19 fouls compared to the first half’s 11. Both the Quakers and the Blue Hens refused to give their opponent a chance to take the lead. As tension grew, both teams played more aggressively. Pulling and shoving led to Delaware midfielder Edwin Flores being shown a yellow card, the Blue Hens’ second out of three in the entire match.
A litany of fouls slowed the pace of the game significantly. Though several attempts were made by both teams, shots failed to connect thanks to the excellent shot-stopping abilities of senior goalkeeper Phillip Falcon III, who denied a close goal by Delaware that nearly gave the Blue Hens the lead.
“This was an up-and-down game. I think we had some really good moments, and I think we had some moments where we were a bit too generous,” coach Brian Gill said. “I would say more in the second half, it was trying to encourage us to continue to be the aggressors, which I do think was taken on fairly well.”
And aggressors they were. Fans described the match as a “shootout,” and the Quakers clearly won. Penn took seven shots in each half, totaling 14 shots overall — six more than the Blue Hens.
In the 79th minute, Bottene drew a foul in the box to give the Quakers a chance at scoring a penalty goal. Captain and senior midfielder Jack-Ryan Jeremiah stepped up to the penalty spot and launched a shot into the goal, taking the lead for the Quakers.
“Those are things I train, so I feel really confident in my abilities. You know, it’s more of a repetition thing and just getting comfortable and confident in my own skin,” Jeremiah said.
The lead didn’t last for long. A sudden foul by the Quakers gave Delaware a chance to tie the match, which it gladly received. Delaware midfielder Freddy Jeffreys made the goal, tying the match at 3-3 with 10 minutes remaining.
Despite their best efforts to regain the lead, the Quakers were unable to advance, and the match ended in a draw. In spite of these results, the Quakers showed grit and determination.
The Quakers will close out their preseason play on Saturday, Sept.19 at FDU. Having won all four previous matches against the Knights, Penn hopes to retain its dominance. The Quakers will begin conference play on Sept. 26 against the Yale Bulldogs, a team they comfortably beat last November.
“You know, the game presents a lot of learning opportunities for us, and that’s what we’re excited about,” Gill said when asked about looking toward the rest of the season. “So, you know, we’re hopeful that we continue to evolve into a better and better team as we move through the season.”
