11/14/2009 1:19:50 PM
A pair of second-half goals ended the Misericordia men’s soccer team's season in the first round of the NCAA tournament as the Cougars fell 2-0 to #13 Johns Hopkins.
MU finishes at 12-5-3 after a season that featured a Freedom Conference championship and a second consecutive trip to the NCAA championships.
After a tight first half, Johns Hopkins came out firing early in the second period. A minute in, Misericordia goalkeeper Andrew Loyd saved a close-range shot at his near post. In the aftermath, Hopkins ripped a shot off the crossbar from the left side of the box.
After another diving save, Loyd made an unbelievable rebound stop but the offsides flag had been raised.
The period of sustained pressure finally paid off for the Blue Jays’ as leading scorer Scott Bukoski curled a low free-kick inside the far post from 20 yards out.
The Cougars finally started to push forward late, with Andy Bush hooking a shot just wide after a free-kick fell to him inside the Hopkins box.
A hard-fought first half featured very few chances for either team. Loyd was forced into making his first save five minutes in, pushing a far post chip over the crossbar.
Defender Chris Hummel dealt with what was perhaps Hopkins’ best chance of the first period when he cleared a ball off the goal line that had a chance to sneak inside the right post.
The Cougars had three straight corner kicks midway through the half, but couldn’t get anything from them. Hopkins had a dangerous free kick with 14 minutes to play in the half but Loyd again tipped the shot over the bar.
For the game, Johns Hopkins out-shot the Cougars 22-8, with Loyd making four saves