Senior Day symbolism paid off for the Wildcats.
Coach Tim Lenahan started Kevin Valenta less out of strategy than out of sentimentality for the seniors’ final regular season home game. After all, the reserve forward had notched only three starts and one goal in his four years at NU.
Only five minutes into the match, Valenta won a ball from Michigan State just past midfield and passed it forward to junior striker Matt Eliason, who was alone in front of the goalie. Eliason slid the ball into the bottom right corner of the net for the game’s only goal, giving NU the 1-0 victory.
“(Valenta) is a great player,” Eliason said. “He won that ball with just pure effort.”
Eliason’s goal was his 13th of the year – the second highest single-season total in school history – and the 30th goal of his career, which ties Jonathan Hall’s school record (1986-1989). The goal came on Valenta’s first assist of the season.
Valenta and fellow forward Eamon O’Neill joined four other seniors in the starting lineup who helped pressure the Spartans for most of the early going. A three-minute long stretch in the first half featured five consecutive NU corner kicks and multiple Michigan State saves before the Spartans could finally clear the ball.
“We caught them a little off guard,” senior defender Mark Blades said. “That early goal made them panic a little bit, and then we just kept putting the pressure on, and we played our game for a little while.”
For a while, it seemed as if the Cats would extend their one-goal lead.
“When you score that early, you hope the score is not going to end that way,” Blades said. “Ideally, I would’ve liked us to put a couple more in.”
Despite constant pressure, the tide turned toward the Spartans.
“For the first 15 minutes, we played really well,” coach Tim Lenahan said. “Then, after that, we didn’t possess the ball. They pressed us a little bit more, and we didn’t handle it. The second half, they took it to us.”
NU almost gave up an equalizer multiple times in the second half, including a frantic sequence in the final minute-and-a-half. The Spartans pushed the ball into the NU third and refused to let it out, leading to a seemingly open shot from Michigan State’s Cyrus Saydee that was blocked by senior Drew Pavlovich. Then, the Spartans earned a corner with less than 30 seconds to go. All 11 Michigan State players, including their keeper, crowded the box in hopes of putting a final shot on net to tie the game. But NU’s stout defense prevented any shot attempts before the final buzzer.
“All you’re thinking is get the ball out,” Blades said. “A head, a hip, just kick it out, get it out, hope that they don’t get a goal.”
Before the game, team members said they were fighting to preserve a chance at the Big Ten championship. An Ohio State tie or loss against Michigan would have given NU sole possession of first place in conference standings. Instead, the Buckeyes won 1-0 and the Cats earned the third seed in the Big Ten tournament.
If NU keeps getting plays like Valenta’s assist it won’t stop starting seniors on Senior Day anytime soon.
“That’s our tradition,” Lenahan said. “That’s not going to change, whether we’re playing for the Big Ten championship or not.”[email protected]
