Men's soccer battles No. 17 to tie as Spicer scores Tiger goal

Soccer is often described as a beautiful, free-flowing game, with great players who are more artists than athletes. However, sometimes soccer games more closely resemble a heavyweight boxing match than an artistic display, with two teams scrapping and fighting for every loose ball and inch of field.

Wednesday night at Lourie-Love Field, the Seton Hall Pirates and Princeton Tigers engaged in the latter, a battle of a soccer game that ended in a hard fought 1-1 tie.

The Pirates entered the game as the favorite, ranked 17th in the country with a 4-2-2 record, including two wins in the tough Big East Conference. Led on the offensive end by freshman Sacha Kljestan and senior Luke Vercollone, Seton Hall had made its living on efficient scoring. The Pirates had taken the same number of shots as their opponents but scored seven more goals with those shots, to the tune of 15 goals in just eight games.

Princeton, meanwhile, entered Wednesday's game with a 2-2-1 record and was coming off a disappointing but well-played 3-0 loss to Hartwick. The Eagles were ranked 20th in the country at the time but jumped to 10th on the strength of the victory over the Tigers. Defense has been the strength of Princeton's game, with senior Jeff Hare anchoring the tough back line along with freshman Jame Wunsch, sophomore Neil Chaudhuri, and junior Ted van Beuren, who recently returned to the Tiger lineup after missing the first four games of the season due to injury.

The Tigers would need all their defensive strength on Wednesday night against the potent offense of Seton Hall. The Pirates were the first to draw blood, as Michael Zotti set up Mike Dzambia for a shot that eluded the long reach of Princeton's junior goaltender Erik White. But despite the 1-0 hole, the Tigers kept battling and creating offensive chances. Finally, with just over three minutes to go in the half, the Princeton offense came through.

Predictably, it was forward Darren Spicer who put the ball in the back of the net. The sophomore now has three goals in six games, leading the Tigers in offense and providing the most consistent offensive spark for the team. His goal on Wednesday came on a beautiful header, set up by senior midfielder Franco Trippichio's well-placed corner kick.

Spicer's goal would prove to be the game's final score. The second half was where the game really became a battle, with the Tigers and Pirates going punch for punch as they fought for every ball on the ground and in the air. Princeton dominated play for most of the half, but the Pirates were able to stave off the Tigers' offensive charges with great defense and timely saves from sophomore goalkeeper Boris Pardo. Neither team could manage a score in an equally intense overtime period.

The Tigers could not help but come out of the game pleased with their scrappy effort, as they entered the game as an underdog. The tie against the powerful Pirates may be just the jump start Princeton needs as it begins its Ivy League schedule this weekend versus Dartmouth. The Tigers will travel to Hanover, N.H., to face the Big Green, currently ranked 25th in the nation.