Mustangs come up short in Sweet 16 match-up
Since the start of the men’s soccer season the Ponies’ young offense has been a question mark. Three freshmen and two sophomores make up the majority of the Mustang attacking front line. Head coach Schellas Hyndman feels the younger players came through when it counted.
“The younger players have really stepped up,” Hyndman said. “They represent the blue collar, hard working style of play that we have used all season.”
Who would have guessed that in the Ponies’ 5-4 loss to Boston College on Sunday that the defense would be the problem? The loss closed out a 16-3-3 season for SMU. The veteran back line of Ugo Ihemelu, Ross Spencer and Kevin Friedland along with defensive midfielder Toti Suarez have been anchors responsible for keeping the Mustangs in countless matches this season.
The game was moved from Boston College to Northeastern University in Brookline. Boston College’s field was declared unsuitable for tournament play because of the accumulation of large amounts of snow. There was no snow on Sunday, however there was a wind that reached 32 mph and temperatures that dropped as low as 19 degrees with the wind chill. Even with the extreme weather conditions, the defense did all they could to hold their ground
To start the game the Mustang offense used the wind at their backs to their advantage scoring all four of their goals in the first half of play. The Mustangs pounded the BC goal area recording 19 shots to BC’s eight. Jake Jackson scored a pair of goals giving the Mustangs a 2-1 lead 25 minutes into the game. The Ponies took a 4-2 lead heading into the half after goals by Colin Clark in the 39th minute and Kellan Zindell in the 43rd minute. Diego Walsh was credited with his 38th and 39th career assists in a Mustang uniform. The two assists gave Walsh sole possession of the SMU all-time career assist record.
Earlier in the week after a 3-1 victory over Florida International University, Walsh said he was worried about the team getting too comfortable with a two-goal lead.
“We were up two goals and we just stopped playing,” Walsh said. “We need to make sure that we don’t let up, that we don’t stop playing tough.”
It was the same two-goal lead that came back to haunt the Mustangs Sunday in Brookline. To start the second half the teams switched sides giving BC the gusts of wind at their back. The Eagles scored two goals just 10 minutes apart and locked the score 4-4 at the end of regulation. After two overtime periods, in which the teams combined for seven shots and four corner kicks, the game went into a shoot-out. Senior goalkeeper Ramez Shamieh came off the bench in the 119th minute to face the Eagles in the penalty kick situation. The Ponies were unsuccessful in four of their five attempts and lost 2-1 in the shoot-out giving BC a 5-4 victory.
The Ponies advanced to Sunday’s match after a victory at Westcott Field Wednesday night. The Mustangs beat Florida International University by a score of 3-1. FIU head coach Karl Kremser said he felt trailing SMU is a tough task.
“Being down 2-0 against a team like SMU makes coming back very difficult,” Kremser said.
The Ponies jumped out to an early lead when Kevin Hudson scored a one-timer off a side volley right though the hands of FIU goalie Shawn Crowe. Three minutes before the half Walsh sent a ball across the penalty box and Duke Hashimoto collected the pass and pounded it home. In the 53rd minute FIU forward Billy Boswell found himself all alone 12 yards from the Mustang net and scored, bringing the golden Panthers to within one goal. Hashimoto put the game out of reach in the 72nd minute scoring an unassisted goal, giving him two on the night.
The Ponies finished the season with a record of 16-3-3. Looking ahead to next year the Ponies will return 23 players from their 29 man roster.
