STLOUIS ? If there were a bit of rust slowing the Wisconsin men’s soccer team in its exhibition game against St. Louis University Saturday, it was certainly understandable.
The match, played under the shadow of the Gateway Arch, was head coach Jeff Rohrman’s squad’s first time competing outdoors in months.
“This was our first time outdoors in the spring,” Rohrman explained after the Badgers 5-1 loss. “We’ve been inside for probably close to two months now. We knew that fatigue and just being outside and playing a game outside would probably affect us at some point.”
Fatigue did seem to be Wisconsin’s downfall. For the first 20 minutes of the match, the Badgers kept up step for step with the Billikens ? even holding a 1-0 lead for much of the first half.
UW forward Nick Van Sicklen led off the scoring early, putting the Badgers on the board with under five minutes elapsed on the game clock. Van Sicklen brought the ball toward the goal from the right side of the field and lofted it high into the air in front of the net. Taking an odd bounce, the ball deflected off of Billiken defender Nick Gannon and slipped past goalkeeper Martin Hutton.
The Badgers maintained the one-goal lead for about 10 minutes. But nine minutes into play, SLU started to show its power. John DiRaimondo, a member of the NSCAA all-freshman team in the fall season and a St Louis-native made a solid centering pass that got by three flailing Wisconsin defenders and looked dangerous. Badger keeper Eric Hanson lurched out and grabbed the ball before it could do any damage, but the tide had begun to turn.
With 13:27 gone in the game, Wisconsin’s Andrew Cardona was called for a handball in front of the Badgers net. DiRaimondo took the free kick for the Billikens. His shot fooled Hanson, who just managed to get a piece of it. Bouncing off Hanson’s left hand, the ball found its way to SLU defender Dan Guffey, who easily put it into an empty net.
St Louis had its next good chance about 10 minutes later. Freshman midfielder Kyle Hopson brought the ball deep into the Badgers’ defensive zone and made a nice pass to DiRaimondo across field. Left open, DiRaimondo tried to get off a quick shot. His effort sailed just wide of the net.
The Billikens converted about a minute and a half later. Will John, a Conference USA all-freshman team member in the fall, forced a turnover about 30 yards from the Badger goal. He took a couple steps toward the net and sent a chip shot flying that made it past Hanson and sailed into the upper right corner of the net, giving SLU a 2-1 lead.
Hanson didn’t make any more mistakes in the first half, shutting down at least two quality Billiken scoring chances.
In the second half the Badgers really started to show their fatigue. Stricken by injuries and a resulting short-bench, UW only had a couple options for replacements.
“It would’ve been nice to have been able to have rotated a bit more,” said Rohrman of his limited bench. “It’s good for some of our guys to have to fill those shoes, and quite a few of our players played really well, but with everyone out with injuries, you’re going to get tired.”
To make matters worse, Van Sicklen seemed to reaggravate a lingering groin problem early in the second half. He limped off the field, bringing his day to a close and fanning the flames of the Badgers’ fatigue.
“You take his athleticism off the field and we’re certainly a very different type of team,” Rohrman said.
The Badgers looked like a different team in the second half, totally failing to contain the Billikens’ attack and struggling to create any sort of attack of their own.
Early on DiRaimondo put a corner kick perfectly onto the foot of teammate Adam Pepper, but Hanson was able to make the point blank save.
A few minutes later DiRaimondo, who had created chances for his teammates all game, got a chance of his own. Pepper slipped past the Badgers defense and Ryan Wileman hit him with a perfect through-pass. UW defender John Scripp, who was beaten on the play, slide-tackled Pepper from behind, setting up a free kick.
DiRaimondo took the kick and nailed it by Hanson low on the left-hand side, giving SLU a 3-1 lead with just under 56 minutes elapsed.
A little more than 10 minutes later, DiRaimondo struck again. Stripping Badger midfielder Frank Iaizzo to the right of the UW penalty area, DiRaimondo made a quick pass to Wileman. Wileman sent it back to DiRaimondo, who completed the give-and-go play by burying the ball in the lower-left corner of the goal from 20 yards away.
Billiken midfielder Patrick Garcia closed the scoring in the 87th minute of play. SLU forward Jack Jones made a nice outlet pass to leave Garcia all alone in front of backup UW goalkeeper Mike Hood, who was unable to make a save on the tough shot.
The Billikens played without NSCAA All-American Vedad Ibisevic, but still managed to look more talented and disciplined than the struggling Badgers. Rohrman said after the game, however, that he isn’t too worried about results in the spring exhibition season, but is using this as an opportunity to see where his team is at.
“In the second half I thought we got tired ? we had a couple injuries and just fell off a little bit from where we started the game. But I was pleased with the way we competed and battled in the first half,” Rohrman said. “I don’t make too much of the results in the spring. I’m more concerned with how we deal with things ? just with our performance from the soccer side of it.”
