St. John’s Falls to Butler, 2-1

Saturday, October 22

Indianapolis, Ind. (Sellick Bowl)

7 p.m.

St. John's University

4-7-4, 2-3-3

Butler

9-5-1, 4-3-1

St. John's (NY)

Butler

Antek Sienkiel picked up his first assist of the season.

10/22/2022 9:26:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Red Storm snaps four-match unbeaten streak

INDIANAPOLIS (Oct. 22, 2022) – The St. John's men's soccer team saw its four-match unbeaten streak come to an end on Saturday night, as the Red Storm fell to Butler, 2-1, inside Sellick Bowl.

All three of the match's goals came in the first half. The Red Storm (4-7-4, 2-3-3 BIG EAST) dominated possession and recorded numerous scoring chances in the latter stanza, but proved unable to break through. With the win, Butler improved to 9-5-1, including a 4-3-1 record in BIG EAST play.

The Red Storm wasted no time getting on the board, taking a 1-0 lead in just the third minute of action. Dribbling the ball just inside midfield, a Butler defender suffered a misstep and lost possession. Nigel Griffith grabbed control and streaked toward the cage before being taken down in the box, setting up a penalty kick for Antek Sienkiel. The redshirt junior calmly buried his seventh marker of the year and put the Johnnies ahead by one.

Facing an early deficit, Butler quickly responded. It took the Bulldogs just 19 seconds to tie the game at one goal apiece, as Jack Streberger scored off an assist from Rico Hollenkamp. Red Storm defenders on the field appeared adamant that the play was offside, but the assistant referee's flag stayed down.

Just over 30 minutes later, Streberger struck again, this time off a pair of quick passes in traffic from Palmer Ault and Hemi Nasser.

Facing a 9-3 deficit in shots at the intermission, the Red Storm tilted the pitch in its favor at the start of the second half. St. John's outshot Butler by an identical 9-3 margin over the final 45 minutes, but was unable to equalize. Butler keeper Gabriel Gjergji recorded all five of his saves in the second half.

The Red Storm's most persistent flurry came between the 66^th and 70^th minutes, as the Johnnies fired four shots in as many minutes, two of which were on target.

The Johnnies appeared to have pulled even in the 72^nd minute on a goal from Wesley Leggett, but the play was negated by the assistant referee's flag.

The Red Storm will return to action on Oct. 29 when it hosts Connecticut at Belson Stadium. Prior to the game, the program will honor the contributions of its 12 seniors.