No. 11 Pirates Fight Off Late Butler Comeback, Pick Up Second BIG EAST Win

Published: Sunday, October 13, 2024

by AJ Rayer

SOUTH ORANGE N.J. – The No. 11 Seton Hall Pirates returned to Owen T. Carroll Field on Saturday afternoon and got back on track in a big way, defeating Butler 2-1 to pick up their second BIG EAST win of the year. The Pirates improved to 9-2-1 on the season and 2-1-1 in BIG EAST play.

Coming off a heartbreaking loss to Stony Brook on Oct. 8, Seton Hall came out aggressive against Butler, determined to make their case for staying in the Top 25 rankings. The Pirates dominated the first 45 minutes, finishing the half with eight shots on goal compared to Butler's one.

Just before the end of the half, the Pirates finally got on the scoreboard. In the 41st minute, Butler's Alejandro Moroso-Maza committed a hard foul in the box on Seton Hall’s Jon Vignir Petursson. Petursson was awarded a penalty kick, and although his initial shot was blocked by Butler’s goalkeeper Caleb Norris, he followed up his own miss to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead going into halftime.

Seton Hall kept up the pressure in the opening minutes of the second half, staying aggressive in their pursuit of extending the lead. In the 66th minute, Seton Hall’s Rikard Cederberg managed to sneak a shot just inside the left post, giving the Pirates a 2-0 advantage.

With an insurance goal to work with, Seton Hall eased up on offense and focused more on defending in their own third, aiming to shut down any Butler scoring opportunities. However, in the 78th minute, Butler’s Josemir Gomez went unmarked by the Pirates and managed to place a shot past Seton Hall goalkeeper Soren Jensen, cutting the Pirate lead to one.

In the closing minutes of the match, tempers flared between both teams after Butler's Nick Okoro committed a hard foul on Seton Hall's Stan De Vries, leading to a scuffle. Red cards were issued to Butler's Josemir Gomez and Seton Hall's Agustin Resch.

Trailing by a goal, Butler had one last opportunity to tie the game in the closing seconds with a deep free kick, but Seton Hall goalkeeper Soren Jensen leaped up and secured the ball before anyone could direct it toward the net, sealing the Pirates' win.

After the victory, the Pirates will look to keep their momentum going next Saturday in Washington, D.C., where they will face the No. 19 Georgetown Hoyas in their biggest conference game of the season.

AJ Rayer can be reached at alexander.rayer@student.shu.edu. 

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