Orange and Spartans Tie 2-2 in Exhibition Contest

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Syracuse men's soccer team took to the pitch for its second exhibition match on Thursday, Aug. 18. The Orange scored twice in the first half and played to a 2-2 tie against Michigan State in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Syracuse took the early lead after redshirt senior Liam Callahan played a dangerous ball into the box. The Spartan defender couldn't clear the ball and knocked it into the MSU goal in the fifth minute. Sophomore goalkeeper Hendrick Hilpert (Eiterfeld, Germany) kept the Orange in front when he made a kick save in the 13th minute.

The Orange were called for hand ball in the box, resulting in a Michigan State penalty kick. The Spartans took advantage, evening the score at 1-1 in the 24th minute. The score remained that way until the 43rd minute when senior Chris Nanco outran the entire Michigan State defense and put his shot in the back of the net to give Syracuse a 2-1 halftime lead.

The start of the second half featured more Orange offense as Syracuse created several good scoring chances, but couldn't take advantage of the opportunities. Michigan State evened the score in the 75th minute. The Orange continued to press forward and senior Oyvind Alseth (Trondheim, Norway) had a chance to give Syracuse the lead, but his shot off a pass from Nanco went high in the 85th minute.

The Orange will play Ohio State on Saturday, Aug. 20 at 6 p.m. in Fort Wayne in their final exhibition prior to opening the 2016 season on Friday, Aug. 26 against Massachusetts at 7 p.m. at the SU Soccer Stadium.

Orange and Spartans Tie 2-2 in Exhibition Contest

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Players Mentioned

Oyvind Alseth

Liam Callahan

Chris Nanco

Syracuse University Athletics