By Derek Brightwell–

Freshman Tim Kubel’s goal in the 87th minute lifted Louisville over Saint Louis in Sunday night’s NCAA Tournament second round match up at Lynn Stadium.

It was the second time the Cards and the Billikens faced off on a rain soaked pitch this season, with the Billikens earning a 1-0 victory in the September match up. For a moment it looked like they could pull off the victory again.

In the 68th minute, a corner kick gave junior Filip Pavisic a shot on goal, which Joachim Ball saved, but junior Francisco Vizcaino took the rebound and put it in the net. The goal came on the first quality look for Saint Louis, who were outshot 5-1 by the Cards in the first half.

Unlike the first matchup though, the Cards were quick to score the equalizer, capitalizing on a chance only three minutes later. Kubel’s cross into the box soared over the head of junior Ricardo Velazco and found its way into the chest of sophomore Andrew Brody who had no trouble putting it into the net from the right side.

“We had great crosses the entire game and I knew one of them was going to come off,” Brody said. “I had made a lot of runs before that into the box. I just kept doing it and having trust in my teammates to put it on a spot where I could finish it and, well easiest goal of my life pretty much.”

Kubel’s goal, his team-leading seventh of the year, came unassisted as he charged into the center of the box from the right and delivered a left footed shot that bounced off Saint Louis keeper Sascha Otte, who was charging at Kubel, and into the net.

“I got it and I was just about to shoot with my right foot and I saw that a guy just slipped and I thought ‘Oh, he’s slipping. If I shoot, I’ll just shoot at him,’” he explained. “Then I took another touch with my left foot and then I was kind of falling and I just hit it with my left foot as hard as I can. I knew the ground was slippery so I hit it on the surface.”

The goal for the German freshman was similar to a chance that he had in the first meeting that was stopped by Otte.

Head coach Ken Lolla attributed both his team’s growth and the schedule that they played for their recent performance in tournament play.

“I think we play our best when it’s been the toughest, and most adverse conditions. I think that’s a sign of the mental toughness and determination of this team.

“The mentality of the team, I thought we dominated the game, and at that point to go down 1-0,” he said. “To have that belief, commitment, courage, and work ethic to fight back like that, it’s all about the mentality of the team. There’s a lot of fight in these guys, a lot of determination. I think the schedule we played this year really prepared us well for this.

“To be honest, I don’t think were as mature as a team (in the first meeting against Saint Louis),” he added. “I don’t think we were as prepared at that point to fight through adversity.”

The game was marked by physical play for both teams, resulting in a total of 19 fouls (13 for SLU and six for U of L) and five yellow cards (four for SLU and one for U of L). The physicality was something that both teams expected and prepared for.

“I think it was a typical playoff game. Typical game with two teams that wanted to win and someone’s season was going to be over and somebody’s was going to continue,” Saint Louis head coach Mike McGinty said of the game. “I don’t think it was dirty by any means. I don’t think the referees did a poor job. I think it was a bunch of 20 year old kids that had their season on the line and some of them ended their career tonight.”

The win for the Cards, combined with Maryland’s loss to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County means that Louisville will host the Sweet Sixteen match-up against the Retrievers of UMBC. The home field advantage will be key for a Louisville team who has only lost two games at Lynn Stadium.

“Our fans were tremendous. I’ve said it before, although it wasn’t a massive crowd tonight, those who were there willed it on for us,” head coach Lolla said of the crowd. “You could feel it. We’re so glad we had this first one at home because I think that was a huge difference in this game.”

As for hosting the third round match, Lolla was very direct: “Awesome, it’s awesome.”

The next round match will be played November 30th at 6:00 pm.

Photo by Austin Lassell / The Louisville Cardinal