Forward Alexander Petraeus came crashing down the right side of the field in the first 15 minutes of the Wednesday game.
After a pass from forward Jelldrik Dallmann in the middle of Temple’s side of the field, Petraeus put a few touches on the ball. He crossed to the middle of the box where midfielder Niv Berkovitz put the ball in the net with the back of his head.
“I knew exactly where Petreaus was going to play it and I knew that I was going to take it all the way in,” Berkovitz said.
SMU danced through the first half of the game. They held possession for almost the entirety of the first, moving the ball seamlessly between defenders to midfields to forwards. Defenders Kyran Chambron Pinho and Lamar Bynum were a defensive force in the back of the field. The two helped SMU keep the lead from start to finish.
Goalkeeper Cole Johnson showed why he is an AAC four-time goalkeeper of the week. Johnson stopped an intense fast-break run from Temple to keep SMU’s 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute. Temple barely contested Johnson in the first half, putting only two shots on net.
The second half was electric for SMU from the start. In the first two minutes of the second half, senior midfielder Harvey Castro scored the Mustangs’ second goal of the night with another set-up from the Petreaus and Dallmann combination.
“To get the goal on senior night in front of my family, my home city, it’s super special,” Castro said. “I’m grateful to God for everything that has transpired this season and I couldn’t have written it any better.”
SMU finished off the night with a total of 12 shots on goal with Temple finishing at five.
Wednesday’s victory came extra sweet as this was SMU’s first undefeated conference season since 2015.
Head coach Kevin Hudson feels confident about leaving the AAC on the right foot. He ensures that his players will stay sharp and hungry for a second trophy come tournament time.
SMU has a few days off before the first game of the AAC tournament starting November 9, either against USF or Memphis. The senior night victory also sealed SMU’s home field advantage for the first game.
When asked the question of how he would be spending the next few days of rest, Berkovitz gave a cheeky smile and simply responded, “celebrate.”
