No. 1 Pitt soccer loses to Clemson in ACC championship match
After sitting on Zoom calls, remaining under quarantine and doing little more than thinking about soccer for three weeks, Pitt’s men’s soccer team found itself one victory from winning the ACC championship.
But the No. 1-ranked team in the nation had its seven-game winning streak stopped Sunday in Cary, N.C., when Pitt lost to Clemson, 2-1, in the Panthers’ first ACC title game appearance.
Clemson won its fourth conference championship in its 11th ACC final.
In the midst of a five-game winning streak to start the season, Pitt (7-1) paused all team activity for covid-related protocols and canceled two matches last month.
Pitt’s last game before the ACC Tournament was Oct. 23. Then, with minimal practice time, the Panthers defeated Duke, 2-1, on Nov. 15 and Notre Dame, 3-1, three days later to reach the tournament final.
When it was mentioned to Pitt coach Jay Vidovich his team’s situation is no way to prepare for a tournament, he said, “Bingo.”
“But we did our best. Zoom calls, we got organized, guys stayed ambitious.
“And the thought was we weren’t even sure we were going to do it. If we would put up a good fight, the guys said it would be worth it. They really wanted a chance to compete.”
Vidovich said Pitt had several chances to score against Clemson but couldn’t finish beyond Valentin Noel’s eighth goal of the season that tied the score 1-1 early in the second half. Noel extended his scoring streak to six games.
Before the game, Pitt was leading the nation in scoring (3.14 goals per game).
“We could have put away a couple goals,” Vidovich said. “We put that ball in good spots if somebody was in the right post to put it away.
“We’re really down. We let the first half slip away. But the other side of it, after being three weeks quarantine, our legs ran out, our ideas ran out there at the end.”
Vidovich said the answer is to “feel the pain.”
“Embrace it and know what kind of work has to be done if we want to be back here to lift the trophy.”
The next step for Pitt is to resume training in January for the spring season that begins in February. With a reduced field, the NCAA Tournament is scheduled for May.
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Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.
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