DAYTON (OH) -- The Dayton Flyers surrendered two second half goals and a pair of red cards as the
Temple Owls got past UD 2-1 on Friday evening at Baujan Field. The Owls remain undefeated in the A10 and improve their record to 4-5-2 (2-0-0), while Dayton falls to 4-5-3 (0-1-2).
Temple brought a struggling side to Dayton but didn't show it for much of the first half as the Owls did a much better job of working the ball on the ground and winning possession in the midfield. The Flyers had a tough time winning loose balls between the 18s and Temple took advantage by earning possession and moving forward into space.
When Dayton did earn possession, long balls were the order of business and that made for easy work by the Temple back line. Both outside defenders physically out-muscled UD's strikers near the baseline and as a result, UD had major issues winning the ball where it counted.
The midfield continued to disappear in large stretches and that left the UD defenders with few options but to continue with long service to the corner flags. That just compounded the problem however as most challenges in the offensive third of the field were three-on-one or four-on-one. With freshmen strikers running up top, assuming the role of target forward is an awful lot to ask of them. That said, UD did a better job of tackling for loose balls in the last 15 minutes of the match to keep things scoreless.
The Flyers were unable to challenge the net in the first half, generating just one shot. Temple had a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.
The start of the second half was a lot like the first 45 minutes. Temple's work ethic continued to be the difference as they controlled the midfield when it counted, while UD's poor touches of the ball gave possession away when they had opportunities of their own. Cohesion and team tactics were a constant struggle. After three or four solid passes of the ball, the Flyers lost patience and sent more long balls down field that were essentially turnovers. Despite the lack of polish however, UD and Temple remained scoreless and it was still anyone's match. With the posture both sides showcased, it looked like one goal would stick a fork in things.
Temple finally cashed in on a rebound in the box in the 65th minute. Goalkeeper Tyler Picard did a terrific job of stopping the initial shot, but the balls squirted out to the left side and Cody Calafiore punched it in for the 1-0 Owl lead.
Dayton tied it up just two minutes later when Temple goalkeeper Fran Nelms challenged a long ball served in the box about 12 yards out from goal. Nelms caught the ball in the air but lost it on the way down and UD's Victor Duru pounded it off the underside of the crossbar to tie the match at 1-1. For as suspect as the Flyers played up to that point, the match was once again there for the taking.
UD went a man down in the 80th minute when Jack Pearson picked up his second yellow card of the night on a slide-tackle from behind while a Temple player was headed directly on goal.
Calafiore notched his second goal of the night in the 82nd minute with a corner kick that bent into the upper 90 of the far post. Picard had trouble pushing the shot away as the Flyer defender (correctly) marking the post wasn't tall enough to head it away himself.
The Flyers had a couple flurries over the last eight minutes, but a straight red card to Duru in the 89th minute encapsulated much of the frustration of the entire match and effectively put the game on ice as the Owls finished the match 11 men on nine.
Temple out-shot Dayton 14-4 and edged the Flyers in corner kicks 4-3. Dayton also committed 18 fouls to just eight for Temple, underscoring the lack of physicality and tardiness to the ball that plagued UD most of the evening.
It was a lackluster performance and not much went right against an A10 foe that showed a great work ethic and some nice midfield teamwork, but otherwise very little dynamic ability on offense. Dayton got beat to the ball too often and the continued lack of patience on offense allows opposing defenses to get off the hook too easily. The midfield must step up and become a larger force both offensively and defensively. UD is fairly solid in the back line, but the defenders are often hung out to dry because they have few passing options on the ground. The young, inexperienced strikers up top still lack the strength and craftiness to win most of the long balls sent their way.
A compromise must develop and the midfield needs to spring the Flyer forwards loose with through-balls, while demanding service from the back line to start the offense. If and when those things start to happen, the goal-scoring chances should start to out-number the long balls sent past the end line.
Dayton remains at home for a Sunday afternoon match against St. Joseph's.
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