Midfielder Tsubasa Endoh pumps his fist after scoring in the first half of the Terps’ 2-0 win over Villanova at Ludwig Field on Oct. 5, 2015.
Entering Monday night’s match against Villanova, the Terrapins men’s soccer team was coming off its first conference loss. After the Terps scored in the 79th minute against Northwestern on Friday, they allowed the Wildcats to net the equalizer in the 83rd minute before giving up another score in overtime.
Against Villanova, however, the Terps received an early goal from midfielder Tsubasa Endoh and never relinquished the lead. Forward David Kabelik added a goal in the second half to seal the 2-0 victory at Ludwig Field.
“It was a terrific response after a bit of a disappointment on Friday,” coach Sasho Cirovski said. “We put together a full 90 [minutes], and I loved the way our players competed on every play throughout the night.”
Despite entering the match with four first-half goals on the season, the Terps (5-3-3) had six shots and held Villanova (6-4) without an attempt in the opening 15 minutes. They nearly took the early lead seven minutes into the match on midfielder Amar Sejdic’s strike, but goalkeeper Will Steiner got a hand on the ball and deflected it out of play.
But on their seventh shot, the Terps found the back of the net. In the 20th minute, Sejdic fed Endoh a pass near the end line. Endoh, who had four shots in the opening 45 minutes, chased the ball down and beat Steiner to the far post, giving the Terps a 1-0 advantage.
“We came out on fire in the first few minutes — we set the tempo — and we didn’t let off for 90 minutes,” Cirovski said. “And that was more what Maryland soccer needs to be like.”
The strike marked Endoh’s first goal of the year, and he almost scored again 12 minutes later after receiving a pass from Kabelik right in front of the goal.
He couldn’t convert, though, as his attempt sailed over the top crossbar. He missed five shots Monday and hopes to improve his shooting accuracy going forward.
“I’ve been training in terms of shooting stuff, but I missed like five great chances besides that,” Endoh said. “I’m working on shooting every day as well.”
While the Terps played without starting forwards Sebastian Elney and Eryk Williamson — both players are in Germany competing with the U20 U.S. men’s national team — their offense flourished against the Wildcats.
The Terps entered the break with 15 shots and added 13 in the second frame. Kabelik and Jorge Calix, who replaced the duo up top Monday night, combined for seven attempts.
And in the 57th minute, the pair hooked up for a goal. Calix began the sequence by dribbling down the left side. His cross then found Kabelik on the ride side of the box — a Villanova defender missed an opportunity to clear — and Kabelik finished his second goal of the year to double the Terps’ advantage.
“You always have to expect the cross,” Kabelik said. “You always have to go no matter what, and that’s what I did.”
The Terps continued to pressure Villanova’s backline after Kabelik’s goal, outshooting the Wildcats 7-0 for the rest of the contest. Seven players, including defenders Alex Crognale and Diego Silva, produced multiple shot attempts.
Monday’s match marked the second straight game the Terps eclipsed 20 shots. This time, though, they walked off Ludwig Field with the advantage on the scoreboard, too.
“The loss kind of hit us,” Kabelik said of the Northwestern game. “We’ve been playing well, and just the result didn’t come. And it felt really good for the whole team to get this win today.”
