Monday's Scoreboard
Western Michigan 4, Niagara 0
Michigan 3, SIUE 1
Delaware 1, West Virginia 0
Stanford 2, Akron 1
Stories Courtesy of MAC Sports Information
Western Michigan 4, Niagara 0
Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan men's soccer team used a four-goal second half to claim its first victory of the 2019 campaign Sunday at the WMU Soccer Complex. A crowd of nearly 700 followed the team's annual Soccer Fest and enjoyed senior forward Anthony Bowie scoring twice for the Broncos to propel them to a 4-0 shutout of Niagara.
"A big thank you goes out to Allison Frontczakand her staff for putting on the biggest and best Bronco Soccer Fest to date," WMU head coach Chad Wiseman said. "The community came out in big numbers; that is fun to see. We had great performances for our guys today. I thought we really controlled the game and created many good scoring chances in each half."
Western Michigan controlled play in the first half, outshooting Niagara 10-1, but was were unable to find the back of the net. The Broncos continued to dominate possession in the second half, with Bowie giving them the 1-0 lead in the 50th minute off assists from freshman Brennan Creek and redshirt junior Matheus Lima. Bowie scored his second goal of the contest in the 64th minute, putting away a ball that was deflected off a Purple Eagle defender.
"It was really nice to see Bowie take his chances; he had himself a day," Wiseman added.
Creek extended the Bronco lead to three, handling a cross into the box from Bowie and striking it past Niagara goalkeeper Nick Burke. The goal was the first of Kalamazoo native Creek's Bronco career.
"We were pressing in the first half, we just couldn't click in the final third," Bowie said. "The second half, we got a little bit of luck to create the first goal. After that, we were rolling. I think it gives a lot of guys confidence. It was really good for the team. We have some really talented freshmen and guys who redshirted last year. We're really excited for them. We know they're ready for this moment. They definitely showed it today so that was really good."
In the 80th minute, redshirt sophomore Dalton Michael picked up his first career goal as a Bronco with redshirt freshman Antonio Rizzo earning the assist to make it a 4-0 advantage for the home side.
"A big congratulations to both Dalton and Brennan on scoring their first goals in a Bronco uniform," Wiseman said. "I hope our fans enjoyed the game. This team is exciting. We're going to need everybody's support all season long."
The Western Michigan defense held the Purple Eagles to just four shots overall, giving up only one corner kick on the afternoon. Offensively, the Broncos generated an impressive 23 shot attempts and earned 10 corner kicks. WMU redshirt freshman goalkeeper Isaac Walker saved all three Niagara shots on net in his season debut.
Michigan 3, SIUE 1
Box Score
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – SIUE men's soccer wrapped up its season-opening Michigan road trip with a Monday afternoon loss at No. 24 Michigan.
It was a pretty rough way to end the trip, quite honestly," SIUE Head Coach Cale Wassermann said. "Our team battled and played well coming off an overtime game three days ago."
The Wolverines broke out on top thanks to a header from Derick Broche in the fourth minute. Michigan carried the 1-0 lead through halftime.
The Cougars equalized in the 75th minute when Jorge Gonzalez got his head to a pass from Vincent Jackson II.
"I was really happy with the goal we scored, which had a lot of elements," Wassermann said. "We were down a goal and turned them over with very good organized pressure."
Jackson carried the ball down the right side before making a move to the inside and sending a high cross to the back post where Gonzalez elevated for header over Michigan goalkeeper.
"Vincent is a creative player and was able to get isolated with the Michigan defender and did a great job to create separation and deliver a good cross right on Jorge's head. Hopefully it is a sign of things to come from this group."
A pair of late Michigan goals sent the Wolverines to victory. Broche and Nebosja Popovic connected twice in the waning minutes. Popovic scored on an assist from Broche in the 87t minute. Broche scored his second of the day, with an assist from Popovic less than 90 seconds later.
"Michigan is a potent team," Wassermann said. "If you give them chances they can put you away. We learned a lot on this trip and to have spells where we are playing so well this early in the season against two top opponents is very encouraging."
Michigan doubled up the Cougars in shots 12-6, but the teams were even at five shots apiece in the second half. Gonzalez paced SIUE with three shots.
SIUE returns home to welcome Evansville Friday night in a 7 p.m. contest.
"We have some things to work on and we will focus on recovering so we are sharp for our home opener on Friday," We are looking forward to bouncing back at Korte Stadium in front of our home crowd.
Delaware 1, West Virginia 0
Box Score
NEWARK, Del. (September 2, 2019) – The No. 20/23/24-ranked West Virginia University men’s soccer team fell to Delaware, 1-0, on Monday night at Stuart & Suzanne Grant Stadium in Newark, Delaware.
The Mountaineers faced an early deficit after the Blue Hens scored a 20th-minute goal, the first the squad has allowed this season, and were unable to earn the equalizer in the road loss. WVU created several chances in the second half, earning all five of its shots on goal after halftime. However, the Mountaineers couldn’t find the back of the net while falling to 1-1 on the season.
“At the end of the day, players win games and coaches lose them, and I didn’t put the right team on the field and have them ready to play,” WVU coach Marlon LeBlanc said. “(Delaware) outworked us and outfought us. We had a lot of chances and balls we have to finish – good teams are able to do that. But I have to do a better job with having my team ready to play.”
WVU fought off an early Delaware (1-1) chance in the 16th minute when a shot off a free kick was blocked and then saved by junior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky. Moments later, though, the Blue Hens took the lead when a loose ball inside the box was taken from 10 yards out for the goal.
The Mountaineers almost drew even six minutes later when senior midfielder Andres Muriel Albino send a dangerous cross into the box. But the Delaware goalkeeper was there to make a play on the ball to stop the WVU attack.
In the second half, Tekesky kept the score at 1-0 when he came up with a strong save in the 49th minute against a charging Blue Hens’ forward. The Raymore, Missouri, native made five saves in the loss.
West Virginia registered a big opportunity when junior forward Tsubasa Takada went down inside the 18 in the 69th minute, which led to a penalty kick. Still, the Mountaineers couldn’t get their breakthrough as the penalty was denied, again keeping the match at 1-0.
Then, it was sophomore forward Tony Pineda’s turn to try to find a goal. He sent a shot just wide, deflecting off the Blue Hen keeper, in the 80th minute, before a frantic, loose ball inside the box with just seconds to play was pushed away to end the Mountaineers’ comeback attempt.
The two squads finished even in shots, 8-8, while the Blue Hens held a slight 6-5 advantage in shots on goal. Corner kicks also were even at four apiece.
Next up, West Virginia returns to Morgantown for its home opener on Saturday, Sept. 7, against Wright State. Kickoff at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium is set for 7 p.m. ET. Along with collecting the 2019 men’s soccer poster, the first 300 fans in attendance will receive a WVU rally towel.
Stanford 2, Akron 1
Box Score
AKRON, Ohio - A goal in the 89th minute (88:50) from Zach Ryan lifted third-rated Stanford to a 2-1 men's soccer victory over No. 2 Akron before 3,617 fans at FirstEnergy Stadium on Monday evening, Sept. 2.
The tally spoiled a highly-competitive contest between two of the better teams in the nation over recent years, one that appeared destined for overtime to determine a winner.
Despite being outshot by a 19-12 margin in shots, the Zips recorded an 8-4 edge in shots on goal on the evening. Junior David Egbo (Enugu, Nigeria) directed all players with a game-high five shots, including four on frame, while freshman Will Jackson (Hudson, Ohio) added three shots for Akron. Logan Panchot led the Cardinal with a team-high four shots.
Redshirt junior goalkeeper Tor Saunders (Seattle, Wash.) registered a pair of saves for the Zips, while Andrew Thomas made six stops for Stanford.
The game-winning tally was set-up by an assist from Jared Gilbey, who flicked a ball into the box to Ryan, who headed it home for his first goal of the season at the 88:50 mark.
Egbo delivered the initial shot on goal in the contest, a strike from 10 yards out that was pulled in for a save by Thomas, in the ninth minute (8:36).
The Zips were whistled for a handball in the box at the 12:25 mark that enabled Tanner Beason to deliver a successful penalty to give Stanford the early 1-0 lead.
Sophomore Marco Milanese (Isernia, Italy) got off a shot for Akron in the 17th minute (16:49), one that was denied by a save from Thomas.
Egbo followed unleashing a laser from 30 yards out at the 23:38 mark that was thwarted by a diving save from Thomas.
The Zips had a nifty run of play in the 25th minute (24:20) where Jackson played a ball into Egbo, who in turn sliced a feed into redshirt junior Diogo Pacheco (Lisbon, Portugal), that came up short of connecting for a shot.
Egbo answered again for Akron with a strike at the 26:17 mark that was blocked in the box.
Senior Skye Harter (Copley, Ohio) recorded a shot on goal in the 33rd minute (32:29), before Jackson followed with a strike at the 36:47 mark, both of which were pushed away thanks to saves from Thomas.
Akron entered the intermission trailing Stanford, 1-0, despite owning an 8-6 edge in shots, including a 5-1 margin on goal.
Forty-three seconds into the second half at the 45:43 mark, Egbo netted the equalizer for the Zips, converting his first goal of the season. Earning assists on the play with a pair of strong passes was Jackson and freshman Henrique Cruz (Fortaleza, Brazil).
Saunders notched saves in the 49th (48:43) 64th (63:43) minutes, respectively, including one from three yards out, off of shots from Panchot.
Egbo nearly gave the Zips a 2-1 lead at the 70:39 mark getting behind Thomas on a 1v1 opportunity and unleashing a shot across his body that only a team save from Keegan Hughes prevented him from recording his fourth career multi-goal affair.
Sophomore Carlo Ritaccio (Westbury, N.Y.) had a shot on goal of his own in the 86th minute (85:07) that went just high of the goal off a pass from Jackson.
That attempt marked the final shot of the evening for Akron, who was ultimately bested when Ryan scored the game-winning tally at the 88:50 mark.
The Zips return to action with an 8:30 p.m. match at Creighton on Friday, Sept. 6, in Omaha, Neb.
