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The Dartmouth
March 29, 2024 | Latest Issue
The Dartmouth

With two late goals and a win, men's soccer shows its mettle

09.26.11.sports.Soccer
09.26.11.sports.Soccer

The Big Green (2-3-2) set out to work on defense and to play better as a unit this week in practice. The extra work showed in the first half, as Dartmouth's defense kept UMass (1-8) off the board and did not let many balls get played past them defenders stepped to the ball aggressively, teammates covered their lines and the team was consistently able to clear the ball out of its half.

The first close call of the game came when UMass almost scored on a corner kick just under 20 minutes left before the break. A header met the crossbar, bouncing down just outside the goal line before being cleared away.

UMass similarly averted danger off a corner kick with seven minutes to play in the half. Teo Larsson-Sax '13 connected solidly with the ball but headed it just inches over the crossbar.

The Big Green came out firing Saturday night, taking 12 shots as a team. Co-captain Lucky Mkosana '12 led Dartmouth with five attempts, including a low and hard shot from outside the box that forced a diving safe with less than four minutes left in the first half.

Concentration proved key from whistle to whistle as the Big Green defense extinguished a last-second chance before halftime. UMass turned a throw-in deep in Dartmouth territory into a header in the middle of the box, but goalie Noah Cohen '14 grabbed the ball to end the period scoreless.

Dartmouth wasted no time testing the UMass defense after the break, getting a shot off in less than 30 seconds.

UMass received a free kick five minutes into the half, however, after a Dartmouth foul near the midfield line. Freshman Josh Schwartz played the loose ball after the kick and rocketed a low shot through traffic and underneath Cohen for the first goal of the game.

Dartmouth then had a handful of great chances, with shots going just wide and technical offensive teamwork paying off with good looks at the goal. In the 66th minute, Colin Heffron '15 played a ball from the left flank to Mkosana's feet at the top of the arc. Mkosana took one touch and stuck the ball low and hard into the goal.

"All I could think when I scored that first goal was, Oh my God,'" Mkosana said. "It feels so good to win in front of so many people. I can't explain how good it feels."

Tied at one goal, both teams started to play more agressively. With 15 minutes left in the game, Kevin Dzierzawski '13 found the ball at his feet and took initiative, ripping the ball into the net from outside the box for the winning goal.

"Kevin had a really good game and his energy was important in the win tonight," Mkosana said. "When he scored the second goal I couldn't believe it."

Dartmouth fought hard down to the wire, looking for more chances to score and to protect its own half.

"I think we really grew as a team today," Mkosana said. "We showed character in every position and did really well fighting to the end."

Cohen faced five shots and had two key saves to keep Dartmouth in the game. He also helped turn away eight UMass corner kicks.

Head coach Jeff Cook said the game offered many positives for the remainder of the season.

"The guys worked extremely hard all week and it paid off," he said. "Playing at home, they really wanted to do well. The incredible support makes a big difference. This was one of the toughest teams to play so credit also goes to the fans for the win."

The Big Green next plays on Saturday afternoon, facing Princeton University on Burnham Field in the team's first Ivy League game of the season. Cook and the rest of the coaching staff will scout Princeton's games this week to prepare for next Saturday.

"The Ivy League has been one of the top conferences in the country for men's soccer in the past few years," Cook said. "An Ivy game is a special environment and, while I have lots of respect for Princeton, I am also confident that if we prepare well we can get the win."