Sept. 11, 2011

CHICAGO - It was a battle from start to finish when Loyola took to its home pitch on Sunday night to take-on Western Michigan. Both teams played with all-out physicality and aggression to a near equal balance of shots and corner kicks, but it was the Broncos who capitalized on their opportunities to take their first victory of the season, winning the match 4-0. With the win, Western Michigan improves to 1-4 on the season while the Ramblers fall to 1-3.

The first ten minutes of the match belonged to the Ramblers as they maintained control of possession and kept constant pressure on the WMU’s defense. On a through-ball from Derek Schrauben, Bronco Jason Grant opened up the game with the first goal at the 19:42 minute. The goal switched the momentum of the match to have the Ramblers playing catch-up the rest of the night.

Yilson Asani followed with goal number two five minutes later with a shot from inside the box, while Kai Mendes added another in the forty-fourth minute to give the Broncos a three-point lead going into halftime.

Loyola came out with more control in the second half and held Western Michigan to only three shots. Shane Lyons snuck in a fourth goal at the 81:08 mark to give the Broncos the 4-0 final score.

The Ramblers played until the end as the last 30 minutes showcased a variety of chances to squash the shutout. At 28:27, James Howe took a long shot from outside the box. Eric Marofske sent a cross at the 25’ mark that was punched out by the keeper. Freshman David Masolak had his chance at a goal with 12 minutes remaining in the match when a series of corner kicks set up a header that flew just wide.

“Western Michigan came ready to scrap and claw for the win,” said head coach Brendan Eitz. “They were more direct and physical than we were. We just came off of a big win and I think our mentality was that they didn’t want to work. We have to play our game.”

Despite the loss, the Ramblers finished with 11 shots in the match, only one shot less than their opponent, and tied the Broncos with five corner kicks apiece. Junior Eric Nock led Loyola with four shots and three shots on goal, and senior Eric Marofske added two shots to the team total.

Christian Krueger started in goal for the Ramblers, finished with three saves, and took the loss to fall to 1-2. Senior Peter McKeown was used as relief between the posts in the second half.

Next up, Loyola will host cross-town rival DePaul in a midweek contest on Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 7:00 CST.

http://loyolaramblers.cstv.com/sports/m-soccer/recaps/091111aab.html