Syracuse’s men’s soccer season ended Thursday with a 3-0 loss to No. 1 SMU in the ACC Championship semifinal at First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina.
SMU controlled the match on the shot chart, finishing with a 20-7 advantage and securing its 12th clean sheet of the season. The Mustangs scored once before halftime and added two goals after the break to move into the ACC tournament championship game for the second consecutive season.
How SMU took control
The opening stages were even, with both teams creating early opportunities without producing a serious threat on goal. SMU began to generate more pressure late in the first half and earned a penalty in the 44th minute after Jaylinn Mitchell was penalized inside the box.
Mukisa Emmanuel took the penalty and put SMU ahead by driving the ball into the top-left corner. The goal was Emmanuel’s ninth of the season, and the Mustangs carried a 1-0 lead into halftime.
SMU extended the advantage in the 55th minute. Mitchell played the ball to Andre Philibbosian just outside the penalty area, and Philibbosian scored with a shot that went into the net to make it 2-0.
The Mustangs continued to attack after the second goal. Stephan Soghomonian added the third in the 66th minute, scoring from outside the penalty area. SMU’s defense protected the lead through the remainder of the match to complete the shutout.
- Final: No. 1 SMU 3, Syracuse 0
- Shots: SMU 20, Syracuse 7
- Scorers: Mukisa Emmanuel, Andre Philibbosian and Stephan Soghomonian
Tournament status
The victory moved SMU to 14-0-3 and gave the Mustangs a second straight appearance in the ACC Championship game. SMU is 2-1-0 all time against Syracuse, according to the team’s tournament recap.
SMU will face No. 12 North Carolina in the ACC Championship game at 3 p.m. Central time Sunday at First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park. Syracuse’s tournament run ended with the semifinal defeat.
