In front of a sea of green and yellow, the men’s soccer team played against visiting Cornell under the Friday night lights.
Coming off a disappointing one-score loss against the nationally-ranked Akron Zips, the Cats were looking to bounce back strong and put on a show for the home crowd on Sept. 1.
UVM, the No. 12 team in the country going into the opening week, came into the game determined to spoil the Ivy league program’s season opener and get back into the win column.
Right from the opening whistle, the Cats came out as the more physical and energized squad, winning the majority of jump balls and establishing a dominant defensive presence. The majority of the first half was played at midfield, with both programs missing their limited opportunities in the box.
Sophomore midfielder Andrew Millar broke the tie with a clean look at the goal in the thirtieth minute. While Cornell responded with an attack of their own, a missed shot wide of the goalpost kept the score at 1-0 going into the second half.
Cornell, not looking to go home empty-handed, dominated possession of the ball in the second half. Despite this, UVM stood their ground, stopping all four of Cornell’s early second half shots thanks to some defensive plays.
After a point-blank misfire and a shot off the goalpost, it became a race against the clock for Cornell.
Tensions rose on both sides later in the game as disagreements over officials’ calls, or lack thereof, boiled over. Players had to be separated, and the number of yellow cards assessed increased to six throughout the night.
In a last-minute offensive push for Cornell, first-year Alex Harris had a one-man fastbreak that ended in an electrifying save from redshirt senior goalie Owen Jack in the eighty-eighth—his fifth and final of the night.
UVM fans and players walked out of Virtue Field happy, shutting out a formidable Cornell team and capping off a successful first week of school. Goalie Owen Jack took home Vermont’s Man of the Match honors thanks to a clean sheet and a five save shutout night.
