![Print this page Print this page](/sites/all/modules/print/icons/print_icon.png)
The University of Louisville (10-4-1) men's soccer team continued its late season surge with a 1-0 win over Villanova (10-4-2) on senior night Saturday evening at Cardinal Park. They played in front of a large, late arriving crowd thanks to a promotion offering free admission to fans with a ticket to the football game, which ended just as the soccer game began.
Those fans were treated to a first half dominated by the Cards, as senior Greg Cochrane joined leading scorer Will Vitalis and sophomore Dylan Mares for several deep runs down the center and left flank of the field. They were able to use superior speed and passing skills to turn these runs into several scoring chances that put Villanova keeper John Fogarty to the test, a test he passed with several brilliant saves. The Cards finally broke through in the 36th minute when Vitalis drew a foul on a run into Villanova's box that earned a penalty kick. Standout defender Andrew Farrell stepped to the penalty spot to take the kick. Fogarty rose to the occasion once again, making another excellent save, but he was unable to control the rebound which bounced right back to Farrell, who headed it home for the eventual game winning goal.
After the game Farrell said about the PK, "I usually go to one side, and the goalie made a great save. I was lucky it bounced right back to me and I was able to head it home and score the goal."
The Cards were able to hang on in the second half as Goalie Mike Mauro made his only 2 saves of the night in the first 25 minutes of the second half, and finished with his fourth shutout of the year to lower his Goals Against Average to .76.
The Cards close out the home portion of the regular season tonight against UC Irvine before heading to Cincinnati Saturday to take on the Bearcats in the regular season finale.
Photo: stock.xchng/Colin Bamford