By: Nikhil Jelaji
The Xavier men’s soccer team surrendered two first-half goals to Northwestern University (NU) on Saturday and lost 0-2 against the Wildcats.
The first goal came just a minute into the game when Grant Wilson found sophomore forward Joey Calistri, who beat the Musketeer defense to the ball and struck the ball in the upper left corner of the goal. This gave NU a quick 1-0 lead. His second goal arrived in the 22nd minute when he scored off of a rebound.
The Musketeers finished with 10 shots, while two were on goal. Northwestern recorded 11 shots and three shots were on target.
“We allow goals and we beat ourselves,” head coach Andy Fleming said. “I don’t think anybody has beaten us yet. The things we need to correct are correctable.”
Xavier now falls to 0-3 overall and the loss snaps XU’s 13-match home-unbeaten streak. Xavier was 11-0-2 in their last 13 home contests, which date back to the 2011 season. The Musketeers have gone 14-2-2 in their last 18 home matches.
Last night, Xavier notched its first regular season win of the young season, defeating the Anteaters of UC Irvine at home 2-0.
This game marks the first time this year that the Musketeers have shutout an opponent.
The men’s team will look to continue its good form as it takes on the University of Kentucky at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15 at home