MOON TOWNSHIP– After being moved from a 2:00 pm start to a 1:00 pm kick-off Robert Morris men’s soccer took on Xavier University Wednesday afternoon at the North Athletic Complex in non-conference action.

This was the first meeting between the two programs in history and the Colonials (1-4, 1-0 Horizon) fell to Xavier (6-1) 1-0, only recording one shot on net.

The lone Xavier goal was scored by Justus Kauppinen off of a corner kick in the final minutes of the game at 87:10. Initially, the goal was credited to Jansen Miller but was later changed to Kauppinen who took the initial corner kick.

Robert Morris battled closely with Xavier for the majority of the game but could not generate any offensive opportunities. Freshman goaltender Friedrich Petrelli got the start for RMU and turned aside four of five shots in total. Head coach Jason O’Keefe made sure to point out the experience divide between the two teams.

“They are quite a bit more experienced than us and that is part of it. We don’t really know how to manage those moments. We did on Saturday, we didn’t today, but hopefully, we do it again this Saturday,” he said. “I think that is what you are going to get from a young group. A lot of effort and energy and you can’t fault the guys’ efforts.”

The inexperience and youth of the team is something RMU will have to be patient with as a rebuilding team. Big wins like last weekend’s thriller against Northern Kentucky will come over time as the core of the team starts to develop. One of the biggest names to this young core is Owen Jowett, a freshman from Manitoba that O’Keefe has high expectations for.

“Our standards are very high for every player, but I think that we have higher expectations for him as we are asking him to do something a little different so it will take some time,” O’Keefe said.

RMU men’s soccer will be back in Horizon League action this Saturday, Sept. 18 at home against the Mikuakke Panthers (2-2 overall, 1-0 conference). Kickoff is slated for 2:00 pm.