It took a while, but the Hoyas’ battle against the Tigers of Towson University finally ended. After 107 minutes of play and two overtime periods, Towson senior midfielder Machel Millwood found an opening between two Georgetown defenders. He passed the ball to fellow senior forward Randy Tolson, who slipped the ball past Hoya junior goalkeeper Tim Hogan to finish the game with 2:44 remaining in the period, giving the Tigers a 1-0 win over Georgetown.
The 100 fans that came to Towson Center Field last Tuesday to watch the Tigers’ home opener witnessed a tough and hard-fought competition between two well-matched teams. Both teams managed 16 shots throughout the game, and both Hogan and Towson goalkeeper Andy Hicks produced nine saves and stayed in the net for the entire match. The Hoyas appeared most active on offense in the first half of regular time, peppering the Tigers’ goal with nine shots.
Head Coach Keith Tabatznik expressed pride in his team’s performance against Towson. “I think possession-wise, it was our best game. The percentage of time which we had the ball was the best. We obviously went 108 minutes without giving up a goal; most of the time you win those games.”
Many individual players stood out on the field for their excellent performances. In over 254 minutes of playing time, Hogan – who has stepped in after team captain and senior Brian O’Hagan was injured against Navy – has had 18 saves and only allowed two goals. Freshman forward Kemmons Feldman led the Hoyas on offense on Tuesday with seven shots on goal.
In addition to Feldman, Tabatznik singled out right back Dan Gargan, who had two shots on goal, for his active role in the game. “Dan got really involved in the attack and created a lot of opportunities we really didn’t finish on,” Tabatznik said.
He also conceded, though, that the Hoyas have not reached the pinnacle of soccer perfection. “The game also brought a lot of areas that we definitely have been needing to work on. A lot of its consistency, playing through an entire game and taking care of chances.”
The loss snaps Georgetown’s two-game winning streak, while it stretches the Tigers’ home winning streak to 10 games. The Hoyas’ record fell to 2-4 on the season, and they are currently at 1-1 in the Big East after defeating Providence last weekend. Towson holds a 3-2 record this season.
This Saturday, the Hoyas face Rutgers in a Big East conference match at North Kehoe Field at 1 p.m., which is the first of three consecutive home games for the team. They hope to add a second victory to their conference record against the Scarlet Knights.
Tabatznik said he believes the team has a chance to prevail. “Big East games are played at a great pace with a lot at stake. If we can maintain possession against more pressure and combine that with being very good defenders, then we will have a very good game against Rutgers.”
“We’d like to think that a result of Georgetown beating a ranked team would not be a surprise to anybody anymore,” Tabatznik said, “and it certainly would not be to me.”