NOTRE DAME, Ind. -- In a heavily rain-soaked evening that created challenging field conditions, the University of St. Francis men's soccer team walked away with a 3-3 draw for the second time in as many games on Wednesday night with Holy Cross College (Ind.) after scoring late with a clutch 77th minute shot off the foot of
Max Gaudry. In a chippy Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup between the two teams that showcased 30 fouls and five yellow cards, the tie moves the Fighting Saints to 2-2-4 overall and 0-0-2 in CCAC action on the season.
First Half
With both teams trying to navigate the rainy conditions, the first half showcased four goals within the first 24 minutes of play. Holy Cross (6-1-4, 0-0-2 CCAC) came out quickly and drove home the night's first goal on its very first shot of the half, sneaking the ball past USF keep
Logan LaFrance in the 5th minute. The Saints fired a quick shot after the goal, but in the 12th minute,
Benisio Gamino found himself in the scoring column after he fired a missile into the HCC net with the aid of an assist from
Jonathan Mendez. The game remained a draw for the next three minutes, but St. Francis would take a 2-1 lead at the 15:52 mark after a HCC foul in the box resulted in
Antwan Esparza pushing the Fighting Saints ahead with a successful penalty kick. St. Francis' defense attempted to hold off the hosts for the final 30 minutes, but with 21 minutes left to play, Holy Cross would connect for its second goal to even the score back up. That 2-2 stalemate would hold as the game progressed to halftime, despite HCC attempting five more shots before the half concluded.
Second Half
In the second half, Holy Cross came out aggressive and shot twice in the first two minutes of the period. Eleven minutes after the game remained at a standstill, but HCC was able to add a third goal to its total in the 56th minute as Cliff Rwabira broke free and blasted his first tally to push the hosts ahead 3-2. St. Francis was finally able to respond on its very first shot attempt of the half in at the 77:43 mark to tie the game at 3-3 after nine HCC tries, when Gaudry connected for an open shot after weaving through the Holy Cross defense. Each team was only able to fire off one more shot apiece in the remaining 13 minutes, resulting in the draw.
Holy Cross wound up tripling the Saints in total shot attempts, 21-7, including 10-2 in the closing half. Gaudry led the Fighting Saints in taking a total of two shots in the match, with both attempts being on target. In goal, LaFrance made four saves to move his record to 1-2-3 on the season.
Up Next
The Saints will use the next two days to prepare for Saturday (Oct. 3) when they travel to Chicago to take on the Cougars of Saint Xavier University. The match is slated to begin at 1:30 pm at Deaton Field.
You can keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on X @USFSaints.
