STORRS — The No. 24 UConn men’s soccer team (6-0-2, 1-0 Big East) was caught by surprise on Tuesday night as in-state foe Fairfield University (1-6-1) ended a two-game losing streak against the Huskies, settling for a draw.
Both teams went into Joseph J. Morrone Stadium with hat tricks in their previous games, with UConn forward Eli Conway scoring three goals in the team’s Big East opener against DePaul University. Fairfield midfielder William Pierce scored the same amount in a win over Columbia University.
The teams had only met twice before Tuesday night. The two Connecticut schools met first in 1993 and most recently in 2008. The Huskies shut out the Stags in both games.
Despite not being in the net, it was a homecoming game for backup goalkeeper Kyle Briere, who transferred to Fairfield following last season.
Pierce was issued a yellow card in the 39th minute, leading with the studs of his cleats.
Connecticut forward Evan Pickering was issued a yellow card after pushing down a Stag.
Defender Max Gummesson went down due to a hard fall caused by Fairfield defender Jacob Vitale, who was issued a yellow card. He was attended to for over two minutes and left the game in the 44th minute. There was no immediate update on his status.
At the midway point, both teams were scoreless, but the Huskies had the edge on shots, 5-1. Connecticut also had all four corner kicks in the first half.
Fairfield defender Stephen Perno received a yellow card in the 57th minute.
Multiple saves were needed by Fairfield goalkeeper Viktor Nikolov as the Huskies had their best chance of the game to that point in the 59th minute, almost capitalized by UConn defender Mikah Thomas.
In the 63rd minute, forward Michael Suski almost broke away for a scoring opportunity but was held by Fairfield defender Jordan Blunschi, who received a yellow card for the action.
In the 70th minute, Fairfield defender Kris Naicker received a yellow card for unsporting.
Despite a burst of urgency in the final 15 minutes, neither team could break through.
The final tally on shots favored UConn, who had eight to Fairfield’s two. The Huskies were able to put three of their eight shots on target but could not get past the brick wall that was Nikolov.
Fairfield was far more aggressive as they had nothing to lose in this game, committing 19 fouls to Connecticut’s nine and having five yellow cards issued.
It was an impressive effort by the Stags defensively. The Huskies had not been scoreless in a game since their Sept. 1 draw with Long Island University. Tuesday’s draw was the first time the Stags were able to hold an opponent scoreless this season.
The draw was frustrating for the Huskies, who viewed the game as a tune-up before facing Seton Hall, the Big East preseason favorite.
The Stags will return home after an in-state road trip, hosting Marist College on Saturday night.
The Huskies will remain at home on Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd as they host No. 15 Seton Hall University (6-1-0). The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start and can be found on FloFC. They will likely need a win on Saturday to remain in the United Soccer Coaches Poll next week, as a draw to the 203rd ranked team, according to Massey Ratings, would not help UConn’s resume.