9/1/2024 | Men’s Soccer | Box Score
BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic men’s soccer (1-1-1) earned its first official win of the 2024 season on Sunday night. The Owls battled through a torrential downpour to knock off Belmont (2-1-1) by a 3-1 final.
The Owls controlled the pace in the first half and took the lead at the half-hour mark. With the first shot on target (for either side), Noah Kvifte made it 1-0 with his first goal of the season. The home side carried the advantage into halftime.
Belmont equalized early in the second half before Florida Atlantic grabbed the lead for good in the 67th minute. Freshman Kasper Heerfordt’s cross found the head of Mamadou Diarra just outside the six-yard box, and the senior converted to put the Owls up 2-1.
20 minutes to go…
This Mamadou Diarra header has the Owls on top! pic.twitter.com/X5HGXzMCN1– Florida Atlantic Men’s Soccer (@FAUMSoccer) September 2, 2024
The Owls dug in defensively for the final 20 minutes. Three Belmont corner kicks came to nothing. Finally, with less than a minute to go, FAU midfielder Aboubacar Traore weaved through traffic into the Belmont penalty area and poked home past the keeper to put the victory on ice.
Belmont had the edge in shot attempts (12-11). Each team had four on target. FAU goalkeeper Nacho Alfaro finished with three saves.
In addition to his game-winning goal, Diarra assisted on both Kvifte and Traore’s goals. The senior had a hat trick in the first half of Thursday’s suspended contest vs. Stetson. That game will be need to be completed later in the season for stats to be official.
The Owls will look to make it two in a row on Thursday when they battle Utah Valley. Kickoff at the FAU Soccer Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m.
