No. 14 Duke 3, Pitt 1
From University of Pittsburgh and Duke University reports / Matt Keenan
Pitt’s men’s soccer team dropped its match to No. 14 Duke, 3-1, Friday night at Koskinen Stadium.
The loss drops Pitt to 7-8-0 [2-5-0 ACC] on the season, with six of its losses coming at the hands of ranked opponents. The win improves the Blue Devils to 9-4-1 [4-2-0 ACC] on the year.
Duke used a three-goal first half to separate itself from the Panthers early. Pitt notched a goal of its own in the second half of play, but was unable to catch the Blue Devils before time expired.
Duke scored its first goal of the match in the 10th minute before adding another score just five minutes later off a header. The Blue Devils scored their third goal with less than a minute left in the first half, recording a header out of a free kick feed. Though the score looked uneven through the first 45 minutes of play, Pitt finished the first half leading Duke in shots, 6-5.
Goal of the Day! Issa Rayyan for @DukeMSOC in 3-1 win.
Won the ball in his own half, played a one-two, dribbled from midfield into the box, blew past defender, finished with aplomb, and celebrated with backflip. Sensational solo effort by the freshman!#NCAASoccer #Golazo ???????? pic.twitter.com/5tYDERiYmv
— #ThankYouDeuce (@JogaBonito_USA) October 20, 2018
In the second half of play, sophomore Edward Kizza would collect his team-high 13th goal of the season after receiving a pass from freshman Rodrigo Almeida in the 58th minute.
While it looked like momentum was starting to mount for the Panthers, a disheartening red card was then issued to Kizza in the 67th minute, leaving Pitt a man down for the rest of the match, with its deficit ultimately being too much to overcome.
Kizza, senior Javi Perez, sophomore Alexander Dexter and redshirt freshman Fiorre Mane each recorded two shots apiece, with senior Robby Dambrot adding one shot in the match.
In goal, freshman keeper Johan Penaranda surrendered three goals during his 90 minutes of action.
Up next, the Panthers will play their final road match of the regular season against West Virginia Tuesday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.