JMU men’s soccer drops regular-season finale to Northeastern, 2-1

The James Madison men’s soccer team lost its regular-season finale 2-1 at Northeastern on Saturday to wrap up Colonial Athletic Association play as the Dukes finished the regular season 7-7-4 overall and 3-3-2 in conference play.

The Dukes got on the board first with a goal from senior forward Jamal Umar (Herndon, Va./Chantilly) in the sixth minute. Umar picked up the loose change in front of the goal after senior forward Josh Grant (Plymouth, England/Torpoint College) broke through the Northeastern defense and ripped a shot on goal. His initial shot was stopped by goalkeeper Dylan Faber, but Umar followed the shot and gave the Dukes a 1-0 lead.

Holding the Huskies off the scoreboard through the first 76 minutes of the match on a cold, rainy afternoon, JMU conceded in the 77th minute when Brad Fountain sent his fourth goal of the year home. Fountain took a pass from Donovan Fayd’herbe de Maudave just outside the box and fired a bending shot by redshirt sophomore Kyle Morton (West Chester, Pa./Reed Henderson) to knot the game at 1-1.

Playing its eighth overtime game of the season, JMU gave up the game-winning goal in the 96th minute when freshman Frantzdy Pierrot scored his fifth goal of the season, second overtime game-winner, to seal the win for the Huskies. The three-time CAA Rookie of the Week floated a header over Morton and into the back of the net.

The Dukes dominated the first half, outshooting Northeastern 10-4, but the Huskies took control in the second half and finished with a 15-14 shot advantage. Though being edged slightly in overall shots, JMU finished with a 7-6 advantage in shots on goal. The Huskies decisively won the corner kick battle by taking 10 while JMU mustered three.

Next weekend’s quarterfinal matchup against the No. 3 seed will be determined Sunday afternoon when Elon takes on Delaware. If either team wins the match, the winner will be the conference champion and James Madison will head to Hofstra in Hempstead, New York. The Dukes lost 2-1 at University Park to the Pride on Senior Night earlier this year. If the game ends in a tie, JMU will travel to Elon. The Dukes and Phoenix battled to a scoreless tie Sunday, Oct. 26, in North Carolina.