Syracuse men’s soccer destroys SUNY Morrisville, 11-0
SU men's soccer crushes SUNY Morrisville
Syracuse Soccer: Right as Rain
It would be a stretch to say Syracuse was expected to lose this match, and they wasted no time demonstrating their dominance. The rain kept crowds away but did little to slow the Orange, who kept the ball in Morrisville’s half for nearly the entire game.
In only the third minute, SU freshman forward Luther Archimede scored the first goal of his collegiate career, and the first goal of the game. His goal was the first of many demonstrations of Syracuse’s strengths over the Mustangs. He, and nearly every member of the Syracuse squad, was simply faster than the challenging opponent. Every loose ball was recovered by Syracuse after a short foot race— from there, superior ball-handling and passing ability allowed them to maintain possession.
Morrisville tried to match ‘Cuse’s athleticism with aggression, which resulted in Teo Chavez getting a yellow card 15 minutes into the game. But by the 24th minute, Ryan Raposo had scored his 9th goal of the season, and the second goal for the Orange. It was the starting point of what was perhaps Raposo’s best performance in an already impressive season.
Morrisville stayed on their heels for quite some time, allowing three corner kicks within a four-minute span. Turning up the aggression again, Morrisville fouled Massimo Ferrin in the box, causing a penalty kick. Ferrin used it to find the back of the net for the first of many times, with the Mustangs’ Tyler Card diving the wrong way, making the score 3-0.
For the following two minutes, the Orange kept the ball in Morrisville territory. It was simply a waiting game before they scored, and score they did. Hilli Goldhar delivered a beautiful pass to Archimede, who scored his second goal to bring the score to 4-0.
Morrisville had no answer. Syracuse continued to put on the pressure, with four shots in as many minutes by Goldhar, Archimede, and Severin Soerlie. In the 39th minute, Soerlie scored on a short shot past the goalie with the defense clambering to keep up.
The Orange continued to keep things in their favor, but they wouldn’t score again until the second half. They entered halftime winning 5-0.
‘Cuse Crushes
It took only five minutes for Ferrin to find the net again. An assist from Soerlie allowed him to bring the score to 6-0, the start of what would become a grueling half for Morrisville.
In another five minutes, Morrisville wasn’t even close to crossing midfield as Soerlie scored his second goal. Things simply did not get easier for the Mustangs — the Orange continued their relentless onslaught for another ten minutes.
Morrisville failed to get a shot off on Syracuse’s goal. Syracuse managed to shoot five times. By the 65th minute, Ferrin scored his third goal of the evening. Things were quickly becoming brutal, as Ferrin wasn’t the only player to nail a hat trick.
Just under three minutes later, Raposo scored a second goal. Another two minutes and Raposo had a hat trick. The score was 10-0 with almost exactly twenty minutes to go in the game.
Syracuse kept the push on as it became clear that Morrisville’s players were little more than training dummies for the Orange. To add insult to injury, the Mustangs scored on themselves in the 85th minute before time ran out.
The game was cold, rainy and far from competitive, but it may very well be what Syracuse needed. Coming off of a 4-7 loss to Clemson, the Orange have certainly reset with a non-conference win. If nothing else, it should serve as a confidence boost as Morrisville only managed to get one shot off during the entire match. The Orange launched 33. In addition, two players scored hat tricks.
Morrisville was expected to lose, and they did so in convincing fashion. The match was little more than an exhibition. When viewed as a training exercise for Syracuse, the Orange can rest easy knowing they were nothing short of spectacular against an inferior opponent.
That performance should give ‘Cuse something to look forward to as they prepare to take on NC State this Saturday, October 26 at the SU Soccer Stadium. That match can be viewed on ACC Network.
