September 18 - Butler - Big East Opener

[Zips1991]

Preview from GoZips.com: 

https://gozips.com/news/2026/9/17/mens-soccer-opens-big-east-play-at-home-against-butler

 

The weather looks great so hopefully a decent crowd. Hoping for a slightly less stressful match than the last couple. 😆 

[Zip_ME87]

Wear your favorite jersey night …

 

 

[Zips1991]

I didn't actually read the preview until now and was not aware of this:

Bulldogs assistant coach Perry Kitchen is making his return to Akron for the first time since helping lead the Zips to the NCAA title in 2010.

[TennZip]

2 hours ago, Zips1991 said:

I didn't actually read the preview until now and was not aware of this:

Bulldogs assistant coach Perry Kitchen is making his return to Akron for the first time since helping lead the Zips to the NCAA title in 2010.

Good job by the Akron communications department to do a nice writeup on Perry.   I was one of many zips fans in Santa Barbara that went wild when Perry scored on a much needed golazo.

 

Perry may have been a freshman but he was a leader on that team.   Perry had a nose for the ball and he provided that 2010 team with much needed toughness in the midfield.

[Reslife4Life]

Let’s get em zips!

[WeRise225]

We have no quality up top. Both forwards just run around, bad first touches, and no threat to score. The midfield is so underwhelming too they struggle to ping the ball around. Sears could be a nice option up top. 

[Let'sGoZips94]

11 minutes ago, WeRise225 said:

We have no quality up top. Both forwards just run around, bad first touches, and no threat to score. The midfield is so underwhelming too they struggle to ping the ball around. Sears could be a nice option up top. 

 

Completely agree about the forwards. I think the midfield does a pretty good job at getting the ball into the opponent's third, but they need to be more aggressive in finding space and ripping shots on target. If the forward attackers are going to be so harmless, they could at least be used as decoys to draw the attention of the defense for the MF to find space. Then again, not sure many defenses will be threatened by why they've seen so far. 

 

 

Side note: very cool that Perry Kitchen is an assistant at Butler. In addition to his key role on the 2010 National Title team, he had a nice pro and international career with a few caps for the USMNT. 

[TennZip]

good writeup on Butler site

Akron led 8-1 in SOG and 10-1 in corner kicks

 

attendance of 1,035

 

https://butlersports.com/news/2026/9/18/mens-soccer-bulldogs-hold-no-6-akron-scoreless-in-draw.aspx

 

On the Record with Head Coach Ian Sarachan
"Incredibly proud of the group tonight. They dug in and got a result against one of the best teams in the country, on the road. The effort from our entire group was tremendous, especially our back line. It's a great way to start BIG EAST play and set the tone for the rest of the season. These are the types of performances that tell you a lot about what your team is made of – how bad they want it. While there is still work to do, we're heading in the right direction. Our whole focus now is on going to Providence next week to get a result."

 

https://butlersports.com/sports/mens-soccer/stats/2026/akron/boxscore/15653

[TennZip]

 

[72 Roo]

Both Butler and the Zips were unimpressive. Our forwards were not a factor and the same could be said of our wings. We missed O'Rourke. Roman has yet to find his form and Sears needs time to adjust to the speed of attacking. He's got all the skills, but he is still raw. Tonight was an opportunity lost. It was more about us than what Butler did.  

[Zips1991]

Just now, 72 Roo said:

Both Butler and the Zips were unimpressive. Our forwards were not a factor and the same could be said of our wings. We missed O'Rourke. Roman has yet to find his form and Sears needs time to adjust to the speed of attacking. He's got all the skills, but he is still raw. Tonight was an opportunity lost. It was more about us than what Butler did.  

Does anyone know what kept O'Rourke out tonight? 

[Reslife4Life]

I wasn’t impressed with ngongang today at all. It seemed every time he got the ball he was met by 2 guys and immediately lost possession. The times he possessed the ball, just so hesitant to take a shot. Credit to London for actually taking some long chances, even if they sailed over the net. Sam Bunch played well in defense. I thought Jack Roman had a decent game getting some passes to get past the back line. Just keep shooting 

[TennZip]

6 hours ago, Zips1991 said:

Does anyone know what kept O'Rourke out tonight? 

I do not know

 

Chad Welker said on the broadcast that Tommy was in the starting lineup...submitted 1 hour before the game.

Welker said ..10 minutes before the game...Tommy was removed from the starting lineup and replaced by Londen.

[Zip_ME87]

I think Matthew Paiva was once again our best and most consistent player. Stalwart defense, great tackles, often winning the ball and putting our offense in a position to be successful even when they didn’t make it happen. 90 minutes every game. 
 

Edited 22 hours ago by Zip_ME87

[Zip_ME87]

I also think RB Nolan McGuire had an excellent game, especially in the face of frustration with our attackers ineffectiveness and their just running around as another ZN.o member noted. 

[72 Roo]

45 minutes ago, Zip_ME87 said:

I also think RB Nolan McGuire had an excellent game, especially in the face of frustration with our attackers ineffectiveness and their just running around as another ZN.o member noted. 

In the manner of Zip_ME87 finding positives in last night's lackluster performance I also want to applaud our back four, GK and Matt Dreas. We are solid in the back and can always build from there while we sort out the attack. Goalkeeping has been better than anticipated and Matt is a beast as a defensive mid. He is deserving of Ist team All American honors. Last night was a pee poor performance but we have been here before and we can recover. This team can be exceptional.

[fknbuflobo]

5 hours ago, 72 Roo said:

In the manner of Zip_ME87 finding positives in last night's lackluster performance I also want to applaud our back four, GK and Matt Dreas. We are solid in the back and can always build from there while we sort out the attack. Goalkeeping has been better than anticipated and Matt is a beast as a defensive mid. He is deserving of Ist team All American honors. Last night was a pee poor performance but we have been here before and we can recover. This team can be exceptional.

That Zips' performance was simply NOT good enough.  Hoyas are licking their chops.

[Zip_ME87]

18 minutes ago, fknbuflobo said:

Hoyas are licking their chops.

 

That may have been part of the problem last night. You can't be playing Georgetown in your head while playing Butler in reality. One game at a time.

[WeRise225]

1 hour ago, fknbuflobo said:

That Zips' performance was simply NOT good enough.  Hoyas are licking their chops.

I’d argue the Zips haven’t looked good in most of their games despite them finding ways to win. Next Friday could be rough. 

[UAZipster0305]

18 minutes ago, WeRise225 said:

I’d argue the Zips haven’t looked good in most of their games despite them finding ways to win. Next Friday could be rough. 

Next Friday we find out who this team really is.