MINNEAPOLIS — The Augsburg University men's soccer team played to a scoreless tie with No. 17-ranked Saint John's University in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest on Saturday at Edor Nelson Field.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 0, Saint John's 0
LOCATION: Edor Nelson Field, Minneapolis
RECORDS: Augsburg 3-1-7 overall (2-1-3 MIAC), Saint John's 12-1-1 overall (4-1-1 MIAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Augsburg's seven ties this season are now tied for the most in a single season in school history; Augsburg also had seven ties in 2008, when it went 12-4-7 and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Division III national tournament.
The Auggies kept the match scoreless through a second-half stretch in which Saint John's had five attacking actions from 73:36 to 81:23 without conceding. Augsburg finished with four shots on goal, and goalkeeper
Finnur Mercier made five saves as both teams recorded shutouts. Augsburg has totaled five team shutouts this season.
The Auggies kept Saint John's off the board in a first half that ended 0-0, with Mercier making three saves as Augsburg absorbed several visiting chances. After the Johnnies generated the early corner and the first two shots, the Auggies pushed back with a 13th-minute corner and a
Liam Paradiso shot in the 23rd minute that Alex Keekley saved.
Christopher Plaza Alvarado and
Asher Johnson also put shots on frame before the half-hour mark, and
Eric Riera forced another save in the 35th minute after a Saint John's push that included multiple shots and a corner. The closing minutes grew physical, with Augsburg called for two fouls and
Zachariah Sherian shown a yellow card, but the half finished scoreless.
In the second half, Mercier had dramatic saves in the 76th and 78th minutes during the visitors' most active late attacking stretch. Earlier, the half became physical, with multiple Johnnies fouls and cards around Auggies fouls by
Gio Casias and
Anson Karn, including a yellow card to Karn at 54:01. Augsburg absorbed additional pressure after the 73rd minute, facing shots, a corner kick and an offside call without conceding. Paradiso put the Auggies' lone shot of the half over the top in the 83rd minute, and Saint John's later went down a player after Eli Ryan received a red card at 83:47.
Mercier finished with five saves over 90 minutes and recorded a shutout. Plaza Alvarado took two shots, putting one on goal. Paradiso also finished with two shots, including one on frame.
Saint John's entered the match ranked No. 17 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Division III national poll.
QUOTES FROM AUGSBURG COACH GREG HOLKER
"Saint John's is a difficult opponent to play. They constantly put balls into dangerous places and compete and hunt for everything. They end up fouling quite a bit as well, and that does make it difficult for a ball playing team. We were no where near as good as we'd like with the ball as a result of that, and that led to a relatively boring MIAC game. They had one good chance from Grady, but
Finnur Mercier dealt with it, Otherwise it was really limited in the box on both ends."
"I thought
Eric Riera had a very good night. He handled both of their wingbacks well as they swapped sides. As the game wore on he started to get higher and help us in the attack as well."
"Overall, we left mostly healthy -- and that will be important as we hope to start converting these ties into wins sooner rather than later. We have another tough week ahead at Carleton and home against St. Scholastica -- two teams we are close with in the standings."
UP NEXT
Augsburg travels to Northfield, Minn., to face Carleton College in a MIAC contest on Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 4 p.m.
