The Panthers showed resilience as they completed a comeback win against Mercyhurst last night at Ambrose Urbanic Field.
After a weather delay of over an hour, the kickoff was finally underway. The Panthers did not let the late start phase them, though.
“We were waiting for the game and we were excited,” graduate student midfielder Arnau Vilamitjana said after the match.
Patience paid off for Pitt the entire night. The Panthers showed grit as they battled from behind, scoring two unanswered goals after going down 1-0 early in the first half.
By the numbers
Right off the bat, Pittsburgh dominated possession, controlling 69% to Mercyhurst’s 31% in the first half. While Pitt maintained control, one small error led to an early fast break counterattack goal by Mercyhurst midfielder Alvar Silva at the 6:19 mark.
Then, just before the first half concluded, Pittsburgh junior forward Albert Thorsen responded, knocking in a header goal from a cross curled in by redshirt junior midfielder Marco Silva at the 42:05 mark. After 45 minutes of play, the opposing sides were knotted at one goal apiece.
Good call, coach
Head coach Jay Vidovich pushed the right buttons during the intermission. The Panthers came out of the break and worked hard, taking the lead at the 54:13 mark when senior captain and defender Jackson Gilman found the head of Vilamitjana on a cross. The scorching header by Vilamitjana set the tone for the Panthers as they cruised to victory.
Performance of the game
Gilman had an outstanding defensive performance while also contributing on offense by assisting on the game-winning goal. He successfully completed nearly all his passes while maintaining control and a high quality of play.
“We came out strong in the second half … we didn’t play to our standard necessarily throughout the 90 minutes,” Gilman said.
Despite his stellar performance, Gilman gave credit to his teammate’s 6-foot-2 stature for the game-winner.
“He’s a dominating figure,” Gilman said, when asked about his fellow teammate, Vilamitjana, who found the back of the net for the win.
What about the other side?
Mercyhurst has struggled early on in the season.Despite the loss, this game can serve as a confidence boost as it goes forth in Northeast Conference play. Against a formidable ACC opponent, Mercyhurst proved it can play tough. The Lakers will start conference play on Saturday when they take on Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York.
What’s next for the Panthers
The next match for Pittsburgh is on Friday, Sept. 26, at 7:30 p. m. as the Panthers host NC State at Ambrose Urbanic Sports Complex. N.C. State (1-0-1) has four points in the conference while the Panthers have 0 with an ACC record of (0-2). The Panthers will look to use Monday’s win as fuel to help them against NC State.
“We need to win, and we are going to go for it,” Vilamitjana said.
The post When it rains, it pours: Pitt rallies in the second half to complete comeback appeared first on The Pitt News.