By Harry Minium
For the entire first half and much of the second, the Old Dominion men's soccer team played more than even with the nation's fifth-ranked team and defending national champion.
But Marshall broke a scoreless tie 13 minutes into the second half when Pedro Dolabella, a graduate student from Brasila, Brazil, knocked in the rebound of his own shot to give the Thundering Herd a 1-0 lead they made stand up.
It was the first Conference USA victory for Marshall (6-1-3 overall, 1-0-2 C-USA). ODU, meanwhile, fell to 2-5-1 and 0-2-1.
ODU played a conservative defensive game in the first half, clogging up their own end in an effort to negate Marshall's superior size and speed, and it worked.
ODU's Eliot Goldthorp almost gave ODU a 1-0 lead with 2:40 left in the first half when his shot hit the cross box and ricocheted back.
With 36 minutes left in the second half, emotions overflowed when ODU's Ettore Casadei, a freshman from Italy, fouled Marshall's Joao Souza in front of both benches. Marshall and ODU players converged and there was enough pushing and shoving to perhaps warrant several yellow cards.
Instead, Casadei emerged with the only yellow card and the Herd seemed energized.
Four minutes later, Dolabelia lobbed a shot that was saved by ODU goalie Dijbril Doumbia, but the rebound came Dolebelia, who booted it into the net.
ODU coach Alan Dawson said the series of plays that led to that goal was his team's only serious letdown. Too many of the Herd players were left open, he said.
"There's not one or two guys who I could point to but several," he said. "When you make a mistake like that, good teams, national championship teams, they punish you."
ODU had its chances to tie. With 26 minutes to go, Owen Ruddy, a freshman from Virginia Beach, hit a crossing pass inches away from Monarch players in front of the net.
Seconds later, Eli Carr took a shot that landed on the side of the net – a foot or so short more to the right and it might have gone into the goal.
Doumbia kept ODU in the game by a leaping save of a high shot with 20 minutes left that he knocked it just over the net and then stuffed a shot from Milo Yosef right in front of the net with 9 minutes to go.
"We're very disappointed," Dawson said. "We executed our game plan in an very good manner and we had one letdown," he said. "We had our opportunities and when you get opportunities against a team like Marshall, you've got to take advantage."
Dawson said he could not fault his team's effort.
"We played very hard," he said. "I feel sorry for the team because we put a lot of effort out there today and left it on the pitch."
ODU next plays at Charlotte Saturday at 7 p.m. The Monarchs host Kentucky in a Conference USA game Saturday, Oct. 15, at 7 p.m.
"We talked right after the game to them and told them we have to keep fighting, you can't out your heads down or start pointing fingers," he said. "We've got a good young team, a very good young team.
"I don't think we're a 2-5-1 team. But that's what the record says and we've got to go out and change that."
ODU Men's Soccer Team Plays Even With No. 5 Marshall Before Falling, 1-0, on Sunday
