CHICAGO, IL – No. 12 University of Rochester men's soccer fell to the 5th-ranked and defending National Champions, the University of Chicago Maroons, 3-1 on Saturday at Stagg Field to open University Athletic Association (UAA) play.
 
After some early back-and-forth play between the Yellowjackets and Maroons, UChicago got on the scoreboard first in the 21st minute. Jack Leuker found Jadyn Hsieh-Bailey with a deep pass, which Hsieh-Bailey was able to corral while UR's defender tripped, and 1-on-1 with Santino Lupica-Tondo, the first year took two dribbles and scored to give Chicago the lead.
 
EliJose Araujo would take UR's first shot in the 30th minute, but after a save from Will Boyes, the Maroons went the other way and quickly doubled their lead.
 
With the Maroons on the attack, Robby Pino found Evan Kanellos ahead of the Yellowjacket defense with a thru ball, and Kanellos beat a diving Lupica-Tondo with his shot to give Chicago a 2-0 lead 30:17 into the first half.
 
The Maroons would look to score again before the half, but the 'Jackets blocked a pair of shots by David Schuster and Ricky Kai in the 36th minute, while Lupica-Tondo made his first of four saves on the afternoon with just under five minutes left in the first, saving Danny Mendoza's shot off a Chicago corner.
 
Chicago would take a 2-0 lead into the halftime break, and after another Lupica-Tondo save kept Kai Walsh from extending the lead to 3-0, Rochester started to put some pressure on Boyles and the Maroons' defense.
 
Shots by Araujo and Joe Anderson went wide in the 69th and 72nd minutes before Lupica-Tondo made another save on Hsieh-Bailey's shot in the 72nd minute.
 
And after a yellow card set up a free kick for the 'Jackets from nearly 50 yards out, Kol Bassuk pulled Rochester back within a score with a free-kick goal. Bassuk sent a dangerous ball into the box on the free kick, and with Boyes not able to fully corral it, the ball bounced into the back of the net for a UR goal.
 
Rochester then looked for the equalizer, picking up a pair of corners while Charlie Shanks forced one of Boyes' two saves.
 
However, Chicago's defense kept the Yellowjackets from finding the tie, and with the clock ticking below a minute left, the Maroons put the finishing touches on the victory, icing the game with a penalty-kick goal, set up by a foul on a breakaway by Pino.
 
No. 12 Rochester falls to 5-1-3 (0-1 UAA) with the loss, while No. 5 Chicago moves to 6-1-2 (1-0 UAA) with the win.
 
Araujo led the Yellowjackets with a pair of shots, while Bassuk notched UR's lone goal. In goal, Lupica-Tondo made four saves, facing 16 shots, while Rochester recorded just five.
 
The Yellowjackets will look to bounce back when they wrap up non-conference play on Wednesday, Oct. 4 with a matchup against Nazareth University in Pittsford, NY at 4:00 p.m.