The boys in blue and white got back on track Friday night as they captured a big 1–0 victory at home against St. John’s. The Huskies lost their previous contest to No. 18 Georgetown, so they were looking for a strong bounce-back performance, and they delivered in a big way.
This was a low-scoring affair as both teams’ defenses were highlighted. However, to start the game there were a good number of whistles as the Huskies had three fouls in the first 10 minutes. UConn goalie Kyle Durham made his first save of the game in the 11th minute on a shot from Jayden Montgomery. Following that, St. John’s kept the pressure on as they drew two corner kicks and a shot in the next five minutes. At this time, the Huskies had yet to truly push the pace into the offensive zone and get a shot on goal. This would not change until the 40th minute when the home side finally got two shots on goal in the span of just six seconds. This would be all the Huskies could muster in pressure for the first half as they went into the break tied at 0-0.
Coming out of the half, St. John’s pushed the pace as Montgomery got a shot on Durham in the 50th minute. Following the offensive zone push for the visitors, the offense was awoken as they pushed into enemy territory. The Huskies had two corner kicks and two shots in the span of six minutes as they put pressure on St. John’s defense. In the 73rd minute, the Huskies would make a notable substitution as Charlie Holmes entered the game for Edward Wester. Holmes immediately went to work as he produced a shot on net to put pressure on the St. John’s goalie Alec McLachlan. Montgomery would also sub out of the game in the 75th minute.
The Huskies got in a bit of trouble as a yellow card was issued in the 79th minute to Balthazar Saunders; however, nothing followed suit. The Huskies pushed the tempo in the 82nd minute as they drew back into the offensive zone. Then, when the clock struck exactly 83:00, Holmes knocked one home on an assist from Hanni Sabri to give the Huskies a huge 1-0 lead with just minutes left in the game. From there, the defense and Durham would hold as the home side capped off a big win at home.
Durham was fantastic for the Huskies in this one as he saved all five shots that he faced on goal to earn the shutout. McLachlan, on the other hand, faced three shots on goal while he saved just two while letting in the game’s only goal. The foul total was almost even for both sides as the Huskies had 13 to St John’s 12. With this victory, the Huskies now move to 8-3-3 on the season as they look to make a final push. Additionally, they also hold a Big East record of 3-2 on the year that they will look to improve in their final three contests which all come against conference foes. They will have Providence on deck next week as they travel to play the Friars who currently hold a record of 5-6-1.