As the ball passed the goal line in the 87th minute yesterday and Syracuse let Hartwick come away with a 1-1 draw, it was a sight too familiar for the Syracuse men’s soccer team. It’s not that the team has allowed a lot of goals – SU has given up 11 through 13 games, tied for sixth-least in the Big East.

The familiar factor was the timing. In the last six games, SU has given up four goals after the 70th minute, while scoring only one. All four have gone unanswered, either tying or winning the game for the opponent. SU is 1-4-1 during the stretch.

Syracuse (5-4-4, 2-4) will look to correct its late-game woes Saturday when it travels to Louisville (8-4-1, 4-2-1) for a 7 p.m. contest.

‘As a player, it’s definitely frustrating,’ defender Brien Chamney said. ‘But it happens, and you’ve got to keep playing.’

Syracuse head coach Dean Foti said the quality of his team’s recent Big East foes has forced the Orange into games decided at the end. One of its late losses came against Connecticut, which is now No. 1 in the country, and West Virginia, which was ranked No. 5 when it beat SU, 0-1, in double overtime.

‘Big games against tough opponents, I mean, that’s when the game is decided,’ Foti said. ‘You hope you score more than you give up. And we’ve given up some, but we’ve also scored some, too.’

While the Orange has come out on the wrong end four times, it did turn the tables against Cincinnati Saturday, winning on an 88th-minute goal by forward Tom Perevegyencev.

‘It’s not like we’re stinking up the field and giving up a bad goal at the end of the game,’ Foti said. ‘What it comes down to is who’s going to make a play. You’ve got to make a play in front of your goal when you’re defending it. You’ve got to make a play in front of the other team’s goal and try and score it.’

It doesn’t get any easier for the Orange Saturday. The Cardinals are one of the hottest teams in the conference right now, suffering only one loss in its last six games. Included in that stretch was an overtime win against then-No. 13 Indiana.

And if the past is any indicator, the Orange could be in for another nail biter. In the past six games, the Cardinals have scored all seven of their goals in the 69th minute or later, including two goals after the 80th minute against Indiana for a 2-1 comeback victory.

While preparing for the road trip, the Orange played on the field behind SU Soccer Stadium, which is made up of field turf instead of natural grass, which mimics the Bermuda grass used at Louisville’s Cardinal Park. The Cardinals’ strategy is also a unique one, but it’s nothing SU hasn’t seen before.

‘Their whole game plan is that they sit back,’ Foti said. ‘They sit into their half of the field, and they want to draw you out of your half of the field – UConn does the same thing – so that they can attack into it, because they want the space in behind you, because they’ve got fast guys.’

With five games left to play and all of them in the Big East, the Orange has been cognizant of its place in the standings – one game out of the sixth place and a spot in the Big East championships. Foti said this is something his team needs no reminders of.

‘We definitely keep track of how we’re doing and how other teams are doing,’ defender Aaron Bonser said. ‘I mean, the season is really important, especially for the veterans.’

The position has led Foti to put the ‘must-win’ label on each of the last five games, four of which are against the top-four teams in the conference’s red division. That means their will be no margin for error late in the game.

‘This is going to be a tough match for us,’ Foti said. ‘At their place Saturday night, I mean, it’s going to be difficult and a challenge. But our guys are ready. I feel like we’re ready for it.’

Published on October 18, 2007 at 12:00 pm