Pitt
6-7-4, 2-3-3
James Madison
9-4-5, 4-2-3
Pitt Falls To James Madison In NCAA Championship First Round, 3-2
11/16/2023 10:16:00 PM | Men's Soccer
PITTSBURGH – The Pitt men's soccer team (6-7-4, 2-3-2 ACC) saw their 2023 season come to an end on Thursday night at Ambrose Urbanic Field as James Madison earned the 3-2 victory in the NCAA Championship First Round. Michael Sullivan and Albert Thorsen scored goals in the loss for Pitt.
ESSENTIAL GAME INFO
Pitt starting XI: Cabral Carter, Jackson Gilman, Raphael Cilli, Felipe Mercado, Albert Thorsen, Guilherme Feitosa, Joao Souza, Mateo Maillefaud, Filip Mirkovic, Mathys Lefebvre, Michael Sullivan
Records: Pitt (6-7-4, 2-3-2 ACC) | James Madison (9-4-5, 4-2-3 SBC)
Location: Ambrose Urbanic Field | Pittsburgh, PA
Attendance: 764
SCORING INFO
Pitt Goal: Michael Sullivan (1), Albert Thorsen (5)
Pitt Assists: Joao Souza (1), Raphael Cilli (2), Guilherme Feitosa (3)
JMU Goals: Alex Krakowiak (1), Rodrigo Robles 2 (9)
JMU Assists: Kevin Larsson (6), Luca Nikolai (4)
HOW IT HAPPENED – FIRST HALF
- The Dukes were able to get on the board first in the 12th minute of play as Alex Krakowiak converted on a turnover by Pitt keeper Cabral Carter on a passing attempt deep in Pitt's defensive zone
- The Panthers came right back and tied the match, 1-1, in the 16th minute as Joao Souza sent a cross into the box and Michael Sullivan converted on a diving header in front of the cage into the left corner for his first of the season
- JMU regained the lead just over two minutes later as Rodrigo Robles broke in down the left wing and beat Carter to the right corner
- Once again, Pitt responded with the tying goal as Albert Thorsen converted on a rebound into the right corner after a hard shot by Guilherme Feitosa came off the JMU keepers hands to the feet of Thorsen
HOW IT HAPPENED – SECOND HALF
- Carter came up with a big diving stop in the 48th minute to keep the match tied early on in the second half
- In the 57th minute, the Dukes broke through with the go-ahead goal as Robles buried his second of the match after a nice cross from Luca Nikolai
- After some back and forth play, Pitt captain Jackson Gilman was given a questionable red card in the 71st minute as he made contact with a James Madison forward on a break. Pitt played the final 19 minutes down a man
- After the card on Gilman, Pitt wasn't able to produce any quality chances as they fell 3-2
MATCH STATS
- For the match, Pitt held the 10-9 edge in shots and the 6-4 advantage in corner kicks
- Feitosa led all players with four shots in the loss for Pitt
MATCH NOTES
- With the loss, Pitt falls to 0-3-0 all-time against James Madison
- With the loss, Pitt is now 10-4-1 all-time in NCAA Tournament matches under head coach Jay Vidovich
- Pitt caps the 2023 season with a 6-3-2 record at Ambrose Urbanic Field
- Sullivan netted the first goal of the match for the Panthers and his first of the season
- Thorsen netted his fifth goal of the season in the loss as he closes out his freshman campaign tied for the team lead with 12 points
Team Stats
Alex Krakowiak (1)
GOAL by JMU Krakowiak, Alex.
11:05
Michael Sullivan (1)
Assisted By: Joao Souza , Raphael Cilli
GOAL by PIT Sullivan, Michael Assist by Souza, Joao and Cilli, Raphael.
15:34
Rodrigo Robles (9)
Assisted By: Kevin Larsson , Clay Obara
GOAL by JMU Robles, Rodrigo Assist by Larsson, Kevin and Obara, Clay.
17:50
Albert Thorsen (5)
Assisted By: Guilherme Feitosa
GOAL by PIT Thorsen, Albert Assist by Feitosa, Guilherme.
21:33
Rodrigo Robles (9)
Assisted By: Luca Nikolai
GOAL by JMU Robles, Rodrigo Assist by Nikolai, Luca.
56:40
