The Slippery Rock University men’s soccer team lost to Salem International University (SIU) 1-0 in non-conference play Tuesday at James Egli Field.
SRU held advantages over Salem International in both shots (8-6) and corner kicks (7-3), but a goal by SIU’s Emilio Marti in the second half was enough to seal the victory.
Sophomore George Oakley led Slippery Rock with three shots against the Tigers. Senior Mike Pcholinsky added two shots as well, with junior Andre Morgan, sophomore Kenton Keeslar and senior Josh Allman all adding one shot each.
Junior goalkeeper Jonathan Sharp made three saves over 90 minutes for SRU in the loss.
Slippery Rock controlled possession for the majority of the game, but couldn’t find a way to produce a goal.
SIU goalkeeper Dom Gillepsie found himself out of position, leaving the Tigers’ goal exposed, giving Pcholinsky a good look at a goal just 68 seconds into the game. His shot went just wide left of the net on the best chance Slippery Rock had to score.
The Rock’s offense has been on a cold streak as of late, scoring just five goals in eight games this season. The Green and White have been shut out in five times in those eight games.
SRU went on to earn three corner kicks over the next 20 minutes, but Salem International cleared each attempt. Slippery Rock’s next best opportunities for goals came late in the first half, but one Oakley attempt went wide while another was stopped by Gillepsie.
The Rock’s defense played well in the first half as the Tigers managed just three shots in the first 45 minutes. One shot went wide in the 17th minute and two more in the final five minutes of the first half that were saved by Sharp to send the game into halftime tied at 0-0.
The turning point of the game came four minutes into the second half when Marti took a pass from Leonardo Figueiredo and beat Sharp to give the Tigers a 1-0 advantage early in the second half.
SRU nearly evened the score on several occasions over the remainder of the game, but Salem International was able to defend The Rock’s proceeding five shots and four corners to finish the one-goal victory.
Slippery Rock returns to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) competition at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Bloomsburg University.
