On Tuesday night in South Orange, N.J., Princeton men’s soccer (5–1 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) downed in-state rival Seton Hall (3–2–3 overall, 1–1 Big East) 3–1, handing the Pirates their second loss of the season.
From the opening whistle, the Tigers looked sharp, controlling most of the possession and continuing to press high up the field. However, it was the Pirates who had the first big chances of the game.
Junior goalkeeper Andrew Samuels was able to keep the Tigers level with two crucial stops early in the first half. In the 26th minute, he made a big diving save to deny a Seton Hall free kick bound for the top corner. Moments later, he came off his line to block another close-range effort.
Coming off an Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week honor, Samuels made sure his team didn’t fall behind in the early stages of the game.
“It was awesome receiving the honor and the recognition, but with that being said, my focus shifted to the Seton Hall game immediately,” Samuels told The Daily Princetonian. “I go into every competition with the same level of intensity and treat every game like it’s a championship match … my job is to ensure we stay in games.”
These saves energized the Tigers as they pushed quickly in search of a breakthrough. Minutes later, senior midfielder Jack Jasinski nearly opened the scoring in the 35th minute, sending a curling shot just into the side netting. Soon after, senior midfielder Will Francis danced past three Pirate defenders and forced a strong save from Pirates keeper Matias Molina.
Princeton finally found the breakthrough in the 42nd minute. A long throw-in deep in Seton Hall’s half of the field took a deflection and fell to sophomore forward Kristian Kelley. Taking one touch to settle the ball, Kelley fired a rocket into the top left corner to put Princeton ahead 1–0 going into the break.
“It was awesome to score my first goal as a Tiger, and I’m appreciative of the coaches for giving me their trust,” Kelley said. “I’ve been injured this season, so to come back and score in my first minute on the field was a fantastic feeling.”
“My emotions and excitement were high,” he added. “I came here to contribute, and I’m glad I was allowed to make a difference in such an important game.”
The Tigers ended the half with five more shots than the Pirates and looked to start the second half where they left off.
The second half opened with Seton Hall pressing for an equalizer. Samuels smothered a flurry of corners early in the half to keep the Pirates at bay.
The game took a turn when, in the 61st minute, senior forward Daniel Ittycheria burst in behind the Pirate back line and was dragged down by defender Konstantin Donalies, who was shown a straight red card.
Despite only having 10 men, the Pirates drew level in the 64th minute when a corner kick was headed in at the back post by Seton Hall’s Aidan Tisony.
Nevertheless, the Tigers didn’t let up as they went back to their high press, and just two minutes later, Jasinski threaded a ball into the box that Ittycheria flicked over the Pirates’ keeper to restore the Tigers’ lead.
“It was huge to respond so quickly after the goal,” Ittycheria said. “Being a man up helped, and it reminded us that we can find a winner and go for it.”
The Tigers cruised the rest of the way and nearly added to their tally in the 75th minute when Jasinski hit the crossbar off a volley. Just two minutes later, junior midfielder Bardia Hormozi intercepted a pass near midfield and drove a low strike into the bottom corner to make it 3–1.
The Tigers maintained possession the rest of the way and were able to get their fourth consecutive win and their fifth multi-goal effort this season.
“It’s huge being on a winning streak heading into League play,” Ittycheria told the ‘Prince.’ “This momentum will only help us and encourage us that we can have a lot of success if we put in the same effort we did these past games. Still, we’ve got to stay focused one game at a time.”
The result marked Seton Hall’s first home nonconference loss since 2019, and the first time the Pirates conceded more than two goals at home since 2021. The Tigers now look towards the Ivy League, opening their conference play at Harvard this Saturday, Sept. 27, at 4 p.m.
“All 31 members of our team believe we can beat any opponent,” Samuels told the ‘Prince.’ “We felt slighted not receiving any Top 25 votes and are using that as motivation. We’ve got a huge Ivy League match against Harvard, and all our focus is there.”
Matthew Yi is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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