The University of Akron, the nation’s No. 2-ranked men’s soccer team, had plenty of scoring opportunities in its season opener Friday night against No. 7 Georgetown.
With 36 seconds left, the Zips finally took advantage of one of them to win 1-0 over the Hoyas at FirstEnergy Stadium-Cub Cadet Field.
Zips senior defender Brad Ruhaak (Copley) slipped a ball past Georgetown sophomore goalkeeper TJ Marcinkowski for the game-winner. Ruhaak’s shot was a desperation kick in a fast, wild sequence that saw several Zips nearly score.
Zips coach Jared Embick found irony in how his team won. The Zips outshot the Hoyas 20-6, including a 9-2 edge in shots on goal. They also managed eight corner kicks to the Hoyas’ two.
Still, it took a rapid attempt at just about the last possible moment for the Zips to win.
“We created a lot more chances than they did and had really good ones to put away,” Embick said. “It’s kind of funny a scramble is the one we won on with all the chances we created.”
Marcinkowski had a big part of foiling the Zips’ offense. Although he allowed Ruhaak’s goal, Marcinkowski recorded eight saves. With under 90 seconds to play, he stuffed Zips freshman forward Jonathan Lewis on what initially seemed like UA’s final chance to win the game in regulation.
“It’s the second year in a row [Marcinkowski has] played really well against us,” Embick said, referencing a 1-0 Zips win at Georgetown last fall. “He’s always been tough for us but, you know, you find a way to get past him and that’s all that matters.”
Zips sophomore goalkeeper Ben Lundt finished with two saves, and his leaping grab with just seconds left to play put away the Hoyas for good. The Zips fouled Georgetown sophomore midfielder Kyle Zajec after Ruhaak’s goal, which stopped the clock and allowed one more long-shot attempt at tying the game.
Lundt, a 6-7 keeper from Berlin, came down with the ball and ended the game.
The Zips play No. 9 Seattle on Sunday in the final game of the Akron Classic, which also features West Virginia. The game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at FirstEnergy Stadium-Cub Cadet Field.
“[We’re] going to be a team that’s going to rattle off a ton of wins this year,” Ruhaak said. “Not every game’s going to be pretty, so we’re just going to find ways to grind [wins] out.”