Mount St. Mary’s Falls 3-0 to Loyola in Baltimore
BALTIMORE — Mount St. Mary’s men’s soccer dropped a 3-0 decision to Loyola Maryland on Friday night at Ridley Athletic Complex, falling to 0-2-2 on the season. The matchup marked the first meeting between the in-state programs since 2019 and the 31st overall meeting in the series. Loyola improved to 1-4 with the victory after scoring twice in the first half and adding another goal late in the second.
The Mountaineers were not without chances, finishing with 15 total shots compared with Loyola’s 16. Mount St. Mary’s also put five shots on goal, while Loyola registered seven shots on target, and the Mount held a 5-2 advantage in corner kicks. The difference came in finishing, as Loyola converted three of its opportunities while Mount goalkeeper Ryan Collins made four saves.
Loyola grabbed control early when Nino Venezia scored in the eighth minute off a set piece. Jeremiah McGuire and Lukas Cortes assisted on the goal, which came from a corner and gave the Greyhounds a 1-0 advantage less than eight minutes into the contest. That early breakthrough forced Mount St. Mary’s to chase the game from behind for nearly the entire night.
The Mount continued creating opportunities but could not find the equalizer before halftime. Lincoln Bauer led the Mountaineers with four shots, while Camden Marquette recorded three and put two on target. Loyola instead added to its lead in the 39th minute when Luca Chen scored his first goal of the season off assists from Edwin Espinal-Elvir and Cal Lackner, sending the Greyhounds into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
Mount St. Mary’s continued to push forward after the break and remained active around Loyola’s defensive third. The Mount finished the match with more corner kicks and nearly matched the Greyhounds in total shots, but Loyola goalkeeper and back line kept the Mountaineers off the scoreboard. Loyola finished with five saves and successfully protected the two-goal cushion deep into the second half.
The Greyhounds put the game away in the 84th minute. Zach Moneymaker scored Loyola’s third goal of the night off an assist from Kristian Knudsen, stretching the lead to 3-0 with just under seven minutes remaining. That late goal sealed Loyola’s first victory of the season and completed the Greyhounds’ shutout.
For Mount St. Mary’s, the loss continued a challenging opening stretch. The Mount opened the season with a scoreless draw against Binghamton, followed with a 2-0 road loss at Duquesne and then battled Saint Joseph’s to a 1-1 draw before Friday’s matchup in Baltimore. Christian Kyriacou scored the Mount’s first goal of the season in that Saint Joseph’s draw, with Bauer recording the assist.
Friday’s defeat leaves the Mount searching for its first victory, but the offensive activity remains an encouraging sign. Producing 15 shots on the road against a local rival shows that the Mountaineers were able to work themselves into attacking situations even while playing from behind. The next step is converting more of those chances, especially when an early opposing goal changes the flow of the match.
The Mount will not have much time to dwell on the result. Mount St. Mary’s returns home Tuesday, Sept. 8, to host Navy at Waldron Family Stadium at the PNC Sports Complex, with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. That matchup gives the Mount another opportunity against an in-state opponent as it continues searching for its first win of the 2026 season.
MSB Take
The 3-0 score looks rough, but Mount St. Mary’s was more competitive statistically than the final margin indicates. The Mount was only outshot 16-15, put five attempts on target and earned more corner kicks than Loyola. The major difference was efficiency, because Loyola took advantage of its best opportunities while the Mount could not convert its own.
That is the area Mount St. Mary’s needs to clean up going forward. The team is getting into attacking positions and creating enough shots to stay competitive, but one goal through four matches makes it difficult to turn those performances into wins. If the Mount can become more clinical in the final third, there is enough underlying offensive production to believe better results can follow.
The Navy matchup now becomes another useful test. A rivalry game at home gives Mount St. Mary’s an opportunity to reset quickly, and the Mount has already shown it can create chances against solid opposition. The focus Tuesday should be converting those chances early and avoiding the kind of early deficit that forced the Mount to play uphill for most of Friday night.
