 "Photo: Men's Soccer by Christopher Curry / The Towerlight")
The Towson Tigers were eliminated from CAA playoff contention Wednesday following their 1-0 loss to the Hofstra Pride at the Towson Center Soccer Complex. Towson’s only offensive production resulted in two impressive saves by the Hofstra goaltender, and tight officiating otherwise silenced the Tigers, which included two red cards on Towson players.
A goal by Hofstra’s Stephan Barea late in the first half on a loose ball, which rebounded off of Towson goalkeeper Frank Fregoso, was the only goal that was scored during the game and overshadowed an otherwise solid outing for the senior goalie in his first start in his college career. Fregoso made four saves in the loss.
“Frank deserved a chance,” Towson head coach Frank Olszewski said. “He came up with a good performance today.”
Fregoso started in place of sophomore John Steele, who Olszewski decided to sit. The lineup changes didn’t stop there however, as senior Maxx Hurkamp, generally a defender, spent the game in the offensive midfield. Olszewski was also liberal in his substitutions, perhaps due to the magnitude of the game. Towson was looking to avoid their first losing season since 2003.
“I think they energy was there, I think the chances were there. I don’t think [Hofstra] was comfortable all game,” Olszewski said. “The positive to take was that the energy was there. The difficult part is, how do you get over it because you didn’t get the result? That’s our next step.”
Towson’s offensive activity picked up starting in the second half, as they were able to create better spacing and more shots on goal. Hofstra goalie Greg Cumpstone was up to the task, however, making two outstanding saves on separate occasions, both ending with Cumpstone in his own net while preventing the ball from crossing the goal.
The stringent officiating was evident throughout the game. Seven yellow cards and two red cards were handed out during the contest. Tempers boiled over in the 83rd minute when Towson defender Phil Greatwich and Steele each received red cards and were dismissed from the contest. Steele was not even on the field when the card was issued.
It seemed to fire up the Tigers however, as their desperation and intensity ramped up.
A late flourish kept the Pride on their heels. With Hofstra buckling down on Towson, junior Marco Mangione, Hurkamp and Javy Bermudez Roa had to keep the offensive pressure on. Towson was able to keep the ball in the Pride end and tallied four second half corner kicks.
But it wasn’t enough.
“We took some cards obviously and [the referee] is trying to keep the game from getting too dangerous,” Olszewski said. “That’s about what I would say on that.”
Sunday afternoon the Tigers will play their final home game of the season against Georgia State. The Tigers will be honoring their four seniors on the team prior to the start.
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