COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Capital University men's soccer team was back at Bernlohr Stadium on Tuesday night for a head-to-head with the Big Red of Denison University. The Comets were eying the chance to break even on the season; a win would raise their record to 2-2. In one of the tightest games of the season so far, the Comets took an early lead, but conceded two goals in the second half and could not pull back equal before the end of the game. The final score: 2-1 in favor of the visitors.

The inopportune result drops Capital to 1-3-0 on the season. At this point, the Comets are halfway through their non-conference schedule.

Denison stays undefeated at 3-0-2.


HOW IT HAPPENED
The game was a possession battle at its very core, and early on, Denison was winning that battle. For much of the first 20 minutes, the Big Red controlled the ball in their attacking half, keeping the Capital defense on its heels. However, the Comets were able to make quick and deep runs into the Denison defensive zone when the Big Red coughed it up. These runs resulted in an influx of shots early on for the Purple and White and one could sense that the momentum of the game might be tipping in Capital's direction. Despite the pure number of shots put up by the Comets, not many reached their destination, rather flying past or over the goal or being gobbled up by the goalkeeper.

It wasn't until the 28th minute that Capital was able to catch a break. A long ball ahead sent CU junior Jack Francisco into the box, where he was violently tripped up by the Denison back line. The play resulted in the referee pointing to the penalty spot, and Francisco was the one to take it. The Capital front-man chose to direct his kick towards the lower right area of the goal, but unfortunately the keeper also chose this direction and made the save. However, the deflection left the ball rolling across the face of the goal towards the left post. Francisco jumped at the opportunity and deposited it into the back of the net with his left foot. Capital took the lead, 1-0.

After that, a massive shift in momentum sent the Comets surging towards the Denison goal. The Purple and White would take six shots over the remainder of the half, the majority of which looked to be legitimate scoring opportunities. Unfortunately, none of them panned out as the result of some bad bounces and a couple great efforts by the Denison keeper. The half ended with Capital still ahead by a slight margin, 1-0.

Denison came out of the half with fury, and a blitz attack just over a minute into the new period allowed the Big Red to equalize. The quick hitter came from Ethan Miracle who ran to tap the ball into an empty Capital goal after a pass from Jake Krueger who drew the attention of the Capital defense and Connor Sexton on the preceding fast break. The result was a brand new ball game, now with Capital trying to retake control, and Denison trying to feed off of their new found momentum. The added intensity made its way into the play on the field as the two teams double the total number of fouls from seven in the first half to 14 in the second, leaving the final tally at 28 for the game. 

With more riding on the game, the pace of play started to pick up and Denison took full advantage of their momentum, sending a barrage of balls toward Sexton in goal. In the 76th minute, a ball off the foot of the Big Red's Michael Sullivan made its way through the legs of Sexton and dribbled into the net. With that, Denison took the lead 2-1. On came Capital's final push, unfortunately for the Comets, it was a fruitless attempt and the final scoreline favored Denison 2-1.


THE NUMBERS
Capital took a total of 14 shots as a collective,six of which made an attempt at goal.

Jack Francisco scored his first goal of the year from the penalty rebound in the first half. He took a total of four shots in the game, three of which reached their target. 

Veron Fongeh also took four shots in the game. All four fell offline.

Devon Hess was the only other starter to have a crack at goal. He took two shots, one on goal. 

Zade Awad, Derrick Harris, and Keegan Reese looked to make an impact from the bench. Awad took two shots that fell offline. Harris and Reese took one each, both reaching the goal.

Also worth noting was the defensive effort from Samuel Yocum, Tony Epstein, and Jarrett Puckett. Whenever there was a ball to be had or a challenge to be made, they were the first on the scene. Yocum and Puckett made a number of run-stopping tackles at the back line to decrease the pressure on the defense. 

Connor Sexton spent the full 90 minutes in the net for the Comets. He made three saves and faced 19 shots.


THE OPPONENT
Denison's goals were scored by Ethan Miracle and Michael Sullivan. The assists were made by Jake Krueger and Niko Argyros.

Tommy Prokos was the keeper for the Big Red. He made five saves against 14 shots faced.


UP NEXT
The Comets hit the road again on Saturday. This time they will head to Springfield for a faceoff with Wittenberg. That game is to be played at 2 P.M. on the 17th.