The junior transfer from Duquesne University, Ask Ekeland, has been impressive in his first 38 minutes as an Eagle, scoring two goals in the Boston College men’s soccer team’s season opener against Iona to give his team a 2-0 halftime lead.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, Ekeland’s first-half heroics weren’t enough to escape with a season-opening win – something not entirely unusual for a BC team that tied or lost 13 of its final 14 games last season.
The Gaels (0–1–0) responded with two goals of their own in the second half of the game, taking away the Eagles’ lead and eventually forcing a 2-2 tie in BC’s (0–1–0) season opener.
Things got off to a rocky start for the Eagles when star sophomore Xavier O’Neil opened the game with two consecutive fouls in less than a minute.
But the tide quickly turned for BC. After just over three minutes, Christian Bejar kicked the ball between defenders to Ekeland at the top of the penalty area.
Ekeland received the ball and shot it in a high arc into the upper right corner of the net, giving BC a goal.
The player, who was named the 2023 All-Atlantic 10 Midfielder of the Year, didn’t have to wait long for his next shot.
Marci Killeen ran down the right side of the field about 37 minutes into the first half and received a pass from Max Andrews. Closely covered by a defender, Killeen spotted Ekeland nearby and tapped the ball backwards with his outside foot, giving Ekeland a clear view.
Ekeland immediately fired a shot that whizzed past Iona goalie Fernando Schmelz and found the left side of the net to give BC a 2-0 lead. The Eagles held onto their lead for the remaining eight minutes of the half despite a corner kick opportunity for the Gaels.
The solid defense that BC had shown in the first half began to falter in the second half.
Brennan Klein started as BC’s goalie and played solidly throughout the first half, stopping Iona’s only shot on goal in the 16th minute. But after the Gaels had just one shot on goal in the entire first 46 minutes, it took just under two minutes of the second half before they had another shot on goal.
Klein saved Sergio Gonzalez Fernandez’s attempt in the bottom left corner, and a team save denied Ricardo Senen Pinillos’ attempt at 58:24. But the Eagles couldn’t keep the Gaels at bay for long.
Less than a minute after Senen Pinillos’ attempt failed, Gonzalez Frenandez scored an unassisted goal to cut BC’s lead to one goal. Less than six minutes later, Dino Feratovic equalized for Iona.
Nearly 25 minutes passed without either team scoring a goal, although Leo Guarino and Ekeland had three shots on goal for BC.
A shot from Iona’s Alvaro Maneiro in the last minute went wide at the top left and the game ended in a stalemate.
