St. John’s soccer starts conference play with a road win over Xavier
The St. John’s soccer team got Big East play off to a good start as they took down the Xavier Musketeers by a 1-0 scoreline in Cincinnati on Saturday night.
Despite playing on the road, the Red Storm controlled the game and had some of the better chances in the match.
Atila Ashrafi had a few really good shots on goal from outside the box with the most dangerous one coming in the 16th minute as the junior midfielder’s strike was tipped onto the crossbar.
Xavier goalkeeper Matthew Rosenberg was called into action several times in the first half and kept the Red Storm off the board with some key saves.
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The Musketeers had one clear opportunity in the first half to score early on as Luka Gavran had to stretch out for the save on a one-on-one opportunity.
After the early chance for Xavier, it was all St. John’s in the first half. The Johnnies outshot Xavier 6-4 in the first frame.
St. John’s continued to dominate possession in the second half and pegged back Xavier even further as the Musketeers did not even register a shot in the second half.
The Johnnies’ pressure was finally rewarded in the 71st minute as Jared Juleau sent in a cross and connected with Brandon Knapp to put St. John’s in the lead and ultimately give them the win.
71' | #SJUMSOC TAKES THE LEAD!
— St. John's Men’s Soccer (@StJohnsMSoccer) September 19, 2021
Juleau finds Knapp with a cross and the senior heads it home for his third of the season! pic.twitter.com/GmDy5KpTlG
St. John’s soccer senior continues to come up in big spot for Johnnies
Knapp once again scores in a big spot for the Johnnies as the senior midfielder notched his third goal of the season, all of which have been game-winners for St. John’s. The assist was Juleau’s second of the season.
The win moves St. John’s to a 5-2 record overall (1-0, Big East) as the Red Storm hands Xavier just its second loss this season.
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Next up, the Johnnies will come back home to take on the Crieghton Bluejays on Friday at 7:00pm EST on the Big East Digital Network.
Creighton will come into the contest with a 1-3-1 record after falling 2-1 to No.1 Georgetown on Saturday in its first conference game of the season.
Despite the Bluejays’ inconsistency and a rough start to the season, they are a dangerous team as they shocked then No. 1 Indiana with a 3-0 road win earlier this season.