Box Score

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men’s soccer team began Sunshine State Conference play on a sour note Saturday night, falling to the Barry Buccaneers at home, 1-0.

Senior forward Aly Hassan (Weston, Fla.) led the offense for the Sharks (2-1-2, 0-1-0 SSC) with a team-high six shots, two of which were on goal. Goalkeeper Lyle Howe (So., Coral Springs, Fla.) had four saves but picked up his first loss of the season.

The bleachers were packed Saturday night as NSU and Barry fans combined for the largest crowd at an NSU soccer match this season. The Bucs (3-0-2, 1-0-0 SSC) gave the hometown crowd a scare when they put the ball in the net in the sixth minute but were called offsides as they celebrated.

Hassan had a great chance to put his team up by a point when he received a pass from Simon Nett (Fr., Grimstad, Norway) and headed the ball just wide only five yards in front of the goal on the right side. Barry came on strong in the last 10 minutes of the first half and doubled the Sharks’ shot output. Aside from that stretch, it was a back and forth first half with neither team gaining any momentum.

In the second half, the Bucs came out hungry and were a step faster than the Sharks at the start of the period. In the 73rd minute, Barry’s Sascha Koetig snuck the ball past Howe on the left side to put his team up by a point. Andres Perez and Guilherme Oliveira earned assists on the game-winning goal.

The Sharks did not lose composure and stepped up the heat over the last 15 minutes of the match. They had several opportunities to score but could not convert. In the 88th minute, Hassan was pushed to the ground inside the penalty box. Despite the roar of the home crowd, the referee did not blow the whistle and time expired soon after.

The Shark defense was strong Saturday night as the Bucs were held to just five shots on goal. In the end Barry outshot NSU, 14-8.

The Sharks will continue their home stretch this Tuesday, Sept. 21 when they face Palm Beach Atlantic at 7:00 pm.