SMU Men’s Soccer beat No. 4 seed Memphis on Thursday in Dallas 3-0.
SMU Forward Jelldrick Dallmann put all three goals in the back of Memphis’ net to give SMU the win. Dallmann finds himself on the 2023 Hermann Trophy Watch List, one of the most prestigious awards in Division 1 soccer. He currently sits at 13 goals for the season.
“It’s nice to have these awards, but at the end, [Head Coach Hudson] says it all the time, you look back in 20 years and talk about what the team did, not what you did,” Dallmann said.
SMU and Memphis battled for the first 24 minutes of a scoreless game, the Mustangs holding possession dominantly. At the 25th minute, midfielder Niv Berkovitz, who was named AAC Rookie of the Year just days ago, came up with the first assist of the game after finding Dallmann who gave SMU their first lead of the night.
SMU entered the locker room at halftime, up 1-0.
At the 51st minute, a mere six minutes into second-half play, Dallmann scored his second goal of the night. The dynamic Berkovitz and Dallmann duo were at it again for the assist and goal. The first assist of this sequence came from recently named AAC Defensive Player of the Year Mads Westergren, putting SMU at a 2-0 lead.
The third and final goal for Dallmann was scored in the 60th minute of the game. The assist came from defender Kyran Chambron Pinho who crossed the ball in front of Memphis’ net where it found the head of Dallmann.
Offensively, SMU challenged Memphis’ goalkeeper all night. The Mustangs had eight shots on goal.
SMU goalie Cole Johnson, AAC Goalkeeper of the Year, played an outstanding game. He had two saves on the net and was key in the Mustangs’ shut-out. Johnson spoke highly of his defensive backs and how they had all worked together to keep the lead alive.
“We know how they’re going to play, we knew what they were going to do and I got bailed out a few times tonight by the back line,” Johnson said. “They do their job like they have every game and I’m just blessed to be a part of a team that’s able to do what they do, to be honest.”
Heading into the AAC tournament as the No. 1 seed, the Mustangs had previously beaten Memphis during the regular season, 2-1. SMU once again faced off with a home-field advantage.
SMU takes on No. 2 seed Charlotte at home for a chance to clinch the AAC title on Nov 12.
