Second Half Goals Lift No. 13 Louisville Past Ohio State, 2-1

Tuesday, October 18

LOUISVILLE, KY

7:00 PM

University of Louisville

10-3-2

OHIO STATE

4-10-1

Ohio State

Louisville

Second Half Goals Lift No. 13 Louisville Past Ohio State, 2-1

October 18, 2016 | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Video: Cherif Dieye Goal Video: Mohamed Thiaw Goal Video: Full Match Highlights Photo Gallery Video: Ken Lolla Postgame Video: Cherif Dieye Postgame Video: Mohamed Thiaw Postgame

Dieye’s fourth goal clinches the win; Thiaw scores 10th goal as Cardinals improve to 7-1-1 at home

By: Garett Wall

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Second half goals from freshman Cherif Dieye and junior Mohamed Thiaw helped power the 13th-ranked Louisville men's soccer team to a 2-1 comeback victory against Ohio State on Tuesday night at Dr. Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium.

Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Cardinals (10-3-2) responded by scoring both second half goals during a 15-minute span to improve to 7-1-1 at home this season. Dieye delivered his first game-winning goal and his fourth goal overall this season, while Thiaw continued his pace as one of the nation's top goal-scorers with his 10th of the season.

"I think it was a tale of two halves and I'm proud of the guys in how they came back from a goal down and found a way to get a win against a tough, gritty team," said Louisville head coach Ken Lolla. "We had moments where we were very good tonight, but it was not, consistently for 90 minutes, our best effort. With where we are, I think it was a really good effort in the second half to find a way to get a result."

The game-clinching goal in the final non-conference, regular season match of the season for Louisville came in the 65th minute when Dieye connected on a right-footed strike from 20 yards out to break the 1-1 tie. The sequence prior to the goal started with an attempted clearance by the Buckeyes on a corner kick from the Cardinals. The ball was sent out of the box and touched by an OSU player before Dieye gained control and scored through traffic.

Louisville, which reached the 10-win plateau for the ninth time in the last 10 years with Tuesday's victory, generated most of the offensive chances finishing with a 19-3 advantage in shots, including an 11-2 margin in shots on-goal. The Cardinals, who earned their first come-from-behind win of the season, also finished with a 12-7 edge in corner kicks.

The Buckeyes (4-10-1) opened the scoring when Christian Soldat scored from just outside the goal in the 32nd minute. The chance started with a cross by Austin Bergstrom from the left side to Abdi Mohamed, who gather the pass near the end line to the right of the goal. He then fed the ball across the six-yard box to Soldat, who connected for his first goal of the season.

Less than six minutes into the second half, the Cardinals found the equalizer after Thiaw finished a short cross into the box from senior Daniel Johnson in the 51st minute. Johnson worked the ball along the end line on the right side of the goal before passing to Thiaw, who scored inside the far left post from six yards away. The 10 goals for Thiaw are the most for a Louisville player since Colin Rolfe's 10-goal season in 2009.

Up next, No. 13 Louisville travels to NC State for an ACC road match on Sunday at 1 p.m., ET. The Cardinals will then close the regular season at home with an ACC Atlantic Division showdown at Lynn Stadium against No. 8 Clemson on Friday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m., ET.

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