Aug. 29, 2008
Washington, D.C. -
Georgetown scored midway through the first half and withstood a late run from Cal State-Northridge en route to a 1-0 win over the Matadors in the first round of the CS-Northridge Tournament Friday night. The Hoyas, who have won five of their last six season openers, improve to 1-0, while the Matadors fall to 0-1. "First things first, Northridge is a very good team," Head Coach Brian Wiese said. "If they play up to their capabilities, they could be an NCAA Tournament team. They caused some trouble for us. We had some trouble doing things we wanted to do early on. I was pretty happy as the first half went on because we made adjustments with how we were playing." Senior forward Peter Grasso (Burr Ridge, Ill./Hinsdale Central) provided all of the scoring Georgetown would need in the 19th minute, striking a shot from the box that beat Cal State Northridge goalie Kevin Guppy. Junior defender Mark Zeman (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) sent a service in to the box and Guppy came to punch the ball away, but a deflection allowed Grasso to get a foot on it and send it past the Northridge keeper for the goal. "It was a great service by Zeman and he has been top-class in how he has delivered balls to the box," Wiese said. "Grasso was in the right place at the right time. Tonight was a night where we bent, but didn't break." That was the only shot during the first half for the Hoyas, who finished the game with 11 shots, including 10 in the second half and two on goal. Northridge had several chances in the first half, taking eight shots, including four on goal, but Georgetown redshirt freshman keeper Mark Wilber (Tijeras, N.M./Albuquerque Academy) made two big saves. "Mark was terrific," Wiese said. "He made two tremendous game-saving saves. He has the capability of wining games for us and tonight he did just that." Georgetown took 10 shots in the second half, with Zeman and junior Scott Larrabee (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif./Loyola) each taking shots on goal, but could not add to the lead. In the latter stages of the game, Cal State Northridge again pushed forward, but the Hoya back-line was solid as Georgetown held on for the win. "I think one of the big differences was that we were on the other side of that 1-0 result," Wiese said, referring to close losses in the last two years. "We found a way to win, we found a way to win on the road. We just found a way and that's a big step for us." Georgetown plays its second game of the season on Sunday, facing Cal State Fullerton in the second round of the tournament in Northridge. Kickoff against the Titans is slated for 3 p.m. ET. The Hoyas make their home opener on Friday, September 5, hosting Davidson at 3 p.m. Georgetown (1-0), 1-0=1 Shots: GU, 11; CSN, 10.
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