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In Syracuse’s last contest, five different scorers propelled it to defeat Canisius 5-1. But against Louisville Friday, scoring chances for the Orange were few and far between.

In the first half, the Orange registered just one shot on goal and one corner. They entered halftime in a scoreless match. In the 73rd minute, SU capitalized on a chaotic sequence.

Braedon Smith made a run into Louisville’s box and his cross caused Cardinals goalkeeper Harvey Sellers to step out. Sellers failed to corral the pass and Olayinka Ogunleye battled Nicholas Kaloukian for positioning, but each hit the deck. SU forward Daniel Burko came streaking into the box and buried the loose-ball chance for the score.

However, as Syracuse looked to close out the win, Chimere Omeze was whistled for a foul just outside the box in the 90th minute. Sander Roed wrapped the free kick around Syracuse’s wall and into the net to equalize the game at 1-1.

Despite holding a lead into the final minute, Syracuse’s (3-2-3, 0-1-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) last defensive breakdown led to a 1-1 tie with Louisville (4-2-1, 0-2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) Friday. The Orange committed 14 fouls in the game and were called for a season-high six yellow cards. SU’s physicality held up for nearly the whole contest until its late falter, as it remained winless in conference play.

After Louisville controlled the pace of play for the first 10 minutes, Syracuse’s first chance came in the fifth minute. Kaloukian broke free from the Cardinals’ defense through the middle of the field. He created a one-on-one with Sellers, and fired it into the net. But Kaloukian was whistled offside.

A few minutes later, Syracuse was called for two fouls that led to Louisville free kicks on SU’s side. On the first, the Cardinals fired a shot from outside the box and Syracuse goalkeeper Tomas Hut stepped up and caught it to thwart the chance.

In the 12th minute, Syracuse got its first sustained possession and earned a free kick soon after, but it came away empty. SU’s recipe against Canisius was serving crosses from the corner to the back post, but the Cardinals’ back line marked the Orange well.

Syracuse got into the right corner of Louisville’s half in the 22nd minute and crossed into the box. Though as Orange players crashed the box, the pass slipped behind and no one was there to finish.

In the 41st minute, Ernest Bawa broke free along the right side and fired a shot, but it was deflected wide. The Orange’s first shot on goal also led to their first corner. Sachiel Ming sent the ball into the box, but it sailed too high and SU came away from the chance empty again.

Bawa created a chance right before halftime after some quick passing with Michael Acquah and Kelvin Da Costa. On the right side of the box, Bawa made a move for a shot, but the Cardinals’ physicality caused Bawa to lose balance on the ball.

While the Orange struggled on offense, so did the Cardinals, who registered no shots on goal in the first half. Louisville was the aggressor to start the second half, drawing a free kick just outside the box in the 49th minute. As the ball sailed toward the net, Andre Cutler-DeJesus headed the ball away.

Four minutes later, Kaloukian nearly put the Orange ahead with a header in the Cardinals’ box. Sellers reacted and positioned himself to corral the chance.

Syracuse earned a corner in the 68th minute, and Elton Chifamba looked at the back post. He connected with Omeze, but the header traveled just over the crossbar.

Despite drawing two yellow cards in the 70th minute, the Orange took back control of possession. Syracuse hurried the ball up to Smith up the left side, and he challenged the Cardinals’ backline to get Sellers off his line. Burko made a run into the box and gave the Orange a 1-0 lead.

Four minutes later, Louisville nearly tied the game. An SU foul led to a free kick for Roed outside the box, and the Cardinals worked the ball to Noah De Blasis. He fired to the left side of the net, and Hut sprung off his feet to stop the shot.

SU got a chance to double its lead in the 86th minute as Smith broke up the left side again with open space. He took the chance into the box and fired, but Ogunleye broke up the shot.

With 46 seconds left, Louisville put pressure deep into SU territory. Omeze battled for positioning at the top of the box, but in an effort to get the pass, he was called for a foul, SU’s 14th of the contest.

Syracuse set up a wall with Nathan Scott on the ground to deny a low strike. Roed took the free kick and sent the ball to the far right side of the goal, out of Hut’s reach. The late score tied the game and Syracuse’s first ACC victory slipped away.

Published on September 20, 2024 at 11:37 pm

Contact Timmy at: tswilcox@syr.edu | @TimmyWilcox32