Goals from sophomore forward Mitchell Baker and senior midfielder Zach Zengue earned Georgetown University a hard fought 2-1 victory at Shaw Field in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
The Georgetown men’s soccer team (14-3-4, 6-0-2 Big East) beat the High Point University Panthers (14-2-4, 7-0 Big South) Nov. 29 thanks to an all around strong offensive and defensive performance. The Saturday evening win earned the Hoyas a trip to their sixth Elite 8 appearance, where they will face either North Carolina State University (13-2-4, 4-1-3 ACC) or University of North Carolina, Greensboro (12-4-6, 3-2 SoCon) next weekend.
The game got off on the front foot with the Hoyas getting their first shot off in the 4th minute. Junior midfielder Mateo Ponce Ocampo found some space on the edge of the box, cut in and fired a shot that went just over the crossbar.
The Georgetown foot was very much on the gas in the early stages of the first half. Junior midfielder Matthew Helfrich had the ball in the box in the 7th minute but fired the shot low and straight at High Point goalkeeper Josh Caron.
The early pressure from the Hoyas paid off eight minutes later as Ponce Ocampo played a low cross into the feet of in-form Baker, who side-footed the ball past Caron to make it 1-0 for Georgetown. After a lengthy video assistant referee (VAR) check, the call on the field and goal stood.
The Hoyas were not done yet as Baker found his way into the box with all the time in the world in the 21st minute. Baker was unable to get solid contact on the ball, but his miss-kick set up senior midfielder Max Viera, whose shot went wide of the back post.
Despite Georgetown’s dominance in the beginning of the first half, the momentum shifted toward High Point around the 25-minute mark. The Panthers were still unable to record any significant chances, of which their biggest came in the 37th minute; forward Celestin Blondel cut onto his left foot and fired a shot toward goal. Hoya senior goalkeeper Tenzing Manske was able to save it.
The half ended with Georgetown holding on to their narrow 1-0 lead.
The first and most bizarre moment of the second half came when High Point defender Lukas Kamrath fouled Viera. At the point of contact, Viera was still able to get his cross in, which found Baker who put the ball past Caron. Because the referee blew the whistle before Baker scored, the goal did not count. Instead, Georgetown got a free kick. This was a tough call for the Hoyas, but they quickly put the moment past them and pushed on.
Just like the first half, Georgetown kept creating good chances throughout the second half. In the 53rd minute, the ball fell perfectly to junior defender Oliver Stafford who took a powerful shot which Caron intercepted.
Six minutes later in the 59th minute, Viera found himself with space in the box. Caron saved his initial shot, but Viera regained control of the rebound ball. Baker received the pass from Viera but was unable to get solid contact on the ball.
Once again, Georgetown’s pressure paid off when junior midfielder Eric Howard played a ball to Zengue, and after a few deflections, the ball bounced perfectly in his stride — Zengue smashed the ball into the roof of the net to make it 2-0 to the Hoyas.
Despite the two-goal cushion, Georgetown kept coming at a shaken Panthers backline. In the 67th minute, Zengue played a cross into Baker who got solid contact on the ball, but his shot fell to Caron.
Three minutes later, Viera played a ball which fell to Baker again whose right-footed strike went just wide of the near post. High Point was losing control of the match.
A massive moment for the Hoyas came in the 81st minute when, after the Panthers cleared the ball from a corner, first-year midfielder Loukas Maroutsis sent the ball to the feet of sophomore defender Tate Lampman. With the chance of a lifetime, Lampan fired a shot toward goal that Caron saved yet again.
A late scare for the Hoyas came in the 88th minute when Jefferson Amaya scored an absolute rocket off the post from a free kick. Suddenly, silence fell over Shaw as nerves kicked in. Instead of dropping heads, Georgetown got organized and saw the game out.
Head Coach Brian Wiese said he was impressed by his side’s resilience today.
“The Sweet 16 game, when you start your journey in January, you’re like, ‘Well, can we get this opportunity to play this game?’” Wiese told The Hoya. “Playing it on your home field of Shaw and getting the result to get to the Elite 8, there’s no better feeling.”
Wiese said he was especially impressed by Lampman’s and Stafford’s performances throughout the match.
“I don’t think a lot of people would appreciate how important they have been,” Wiese said. “You just took a High Point team that scores barrels of goals and limited them to a special free kick as their best chance of the game. That’s a huge credit to those two guys.”
With this win, Georgetown moves on to the Elite 8 of the NCAA tournament. They are set to face either NC State or UNC Greensboro Friday Dec. 5 at 6 p.m. on Shaw Field.
