In the 10th minute of the second half at Cincinnati’s Gettler Stadium, Bearcats midfielder Matt Bahner launched a shot past leaping Syracuse goalkeeper Alex Bono from the top of the box to push the Bearcats ahead.

That lone goal separated Syracuse (8-3, 1-1 Big East) and Cincinnati (5-4-2, 2-0) when the game ended 36 minutes later. The Orange lost its first Big East match this season 1-0 on the road Saturday night. Bahner’s goal and a bevy of SU fouls kept the Orange a win away from earning its most wins in a regular season since 1999.

“The difference between winning and losing is so small when conference play starts up,” head coach Ian McIntyre said in a phone interview. “And it turned out that the difference tonight was that great goal from their guy, No. 17 (Bahner).”

McIntyre said sloppy play and crucial fouls limited SU’s chances against Cincinnati. The Orange held the advantage in shots and corner kicks on Saturday night, but it couldn’t rally past Bahner’s score for an equalizer.

The Orange was called for 14 fouls in the game. One of those fouls — a yellow card on midfielder Louis Clark — forced SU to play portions of the game without one of its top scorers. A red card on forward Tony Asante put the team in a man-down scenario for the last 56 minutes of regulation.

Bahner, a senior midfielder, received the ball at the top of the box, squared up his shot and fired. Despite a diving effort from Bono, it hit the back of the net for the game’s first and only score.

McIntyre said that there was nothing Bono could do on such a “well-struck” ball.

“You could tell that the team that struck first was going to have a better chance at winning tonight,” McIntyre said. “That team wasn’t us, but we’ll learn from this game, regroup and get ready for Rutgers at home on Wednesday night.”

Published on September 29, 2012 at 11:05 pm

Contact Nick: nctoney@syr.edu | @nicktoneytweets