Men’s soccer (13-3-2, 5-2 Ivy) started its NCAA Tournament run with a comeback win over visitors Fordham (8-6-5, 4-1-3 Atlantic 10). Despite Fordham coming out to a 2-0 lead, the Red scored four straight to win the game and move on.
Conditions for the game were wet and cold, as the game was moved up from 5 p.m. to 2 p.m. due to a winter storm warning.
Early on, Cornell dominated the game, with Fordham struggling to get out of its half and resist the pressure from Cornell. However, Fordham was awarded a penalty kick in the seventh minute when a turnover from the Cornell defense was pounced on by the Rams. The penalty was saved by junior goalkeeper Ryan Friedberg, and a juicy rebound was sent wide by Fordham.
However, this penalty did not serve as a wakeup call for the Red, as Fordham opened the scoring in the 28th minute. Another turnover from the Cornell defense led to a Fordham cross and header for a goal.
Less than four minutes later, a Fordham attacker found himself on the ball in the box. Two Cornell defenders converged on the ball, trying to block the shot, but lined up to allow Fordham to curl a shot to the outside post to take a 2-0 lead into halftime.
“We were knocking on the door throughout the first half, and I felt confident in the team’s ability to create more chances as the game went on,” said senior forward Alioune Ka.
Cornell came out strong in the second half and scored four goals unanswered to win the game.
In the 50th minute, junior midfielder Daniel Samways played senior forward Danny Lokko in the box. Lokko sent a ball across to sophomore forward Alex Harris, who softly placed a left-footed shot past the Fordham goalkeeper.
In the 60th minute, Cornell was given a penalty kick of its own when Lokko was taken down in the box by the Rams’ keeper. Harris stepped up and sent the goalie the wrong way, burying the penalty and bringing the Red all the way back into a tie game.
Harris’ two goals on the day got him to 19 on the season and put him alone in second place for single season goals for Cornell, three goals behind Victor Huerta ’73.
“The goalscoring milestone is definitely an honor,” Harris said. “However, it is a testament to my teammates and coaches for helping put me in position to score all those goals.”
In the 73rd minute, Ka beat his defender along the goal line and drew the goalie off his line. Ka sent a ball into the box that was deflected by a Fordham defender into the net to give Cornell its first lead of the game.
Seven minutes later, Lokko was jogging past the Fordham goalie who threw the ball and hit Lokko. Lokko was given a yellow card.
With less than five minutes to go in the match, sophomore midfielder Liam May played a ball to Ka at the top of the box. Ka scored a brace with a one time shot to the bottom left corner, sending the fans and bench into a frenzy at Berman Field.
Lokko, having been subbed out at this point, celebrated with the team and lingered to give Ka a hug. The referee gave Lokko his second yellow card of the game and the red that comes with it. The red card sent Lokko to the locker room for the rest of the game and means that he cannot play in Cornell’s second round contest.
The 4-2 win marked Cornell’s first NCAA Tournament win since Nov. 20, 2022 when the Red earned a bye and won its second round fixture against the University of Maryland, 2-1, in even colder conditions.
The Red will now travel to face the University of Pittsburgh on Sunday at 5 p.m. Pitt has a record of 12-5-0 and spent much of the season ranked first in the RPI rating. The Panthers have limped into the tournament after back-to-back 2-0 losses ended their regular season and eliminated them from the ACC Tournament. Pitt has made the NCAA tournament every year since 2019 and made the final four in both 2020 and 2022.
“Pittsburgh is definitely going to be a tough opponent,” Harris said. “But we feel like we have what it takes to beat them.”
Without one of Cornell’s senior starters in Lokko, coach John Smith faces a tough starting lineup decision with little depth at forward. One option is to move Ka up to fill Lokko’s spot at forward and slot May into Ka’s outside midfield position. However, Ka has been thriving in the midfield, and it is unlikely that the Red can replace the work rate and skill that he gives at the position.
Cornell and Pitt shared four common opponents over the course of the regular season in Georgetown, Pennsylvania State, the University of Pennsylvania, and Syracuse. Pitt had a record of 2-2-0 in these games and Cornell went 2-1-1. Sunday’s high-stakes match will be the first time that the two programs have ever faced each other.