Friday's Scoreboard
Nothern Illinois 3, Marquette 0
Western Michigan 3, Dayton 0
Akron 1, Indiana 1
West Virginia 1, Ohio State 0
Georgia Southern 2, North Florida 1
Belmont 2, Georgia State 1
Stories Courtesy of MAC Sports Information
Nothern Illinois 3, Marquette 0
Box Score
DEKALB, Ill. – Three goals in the opening half-hour helped the Northern Illinois University men's soccer team cruise past 18th-ranked Marquette, 3-0, on Friday night (Sept. 10) at the NIU Soccer Complex. Nick Markanich (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) scored his fifth of the season and Anthony Markanich (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) netted his third as the Huskies improved to 4-1 on the season.
"It was a fantastic result," said NIU head coach Ryan Swan. "To have a team of Marquette's caliber coming in, you know it is always going to be a tough challenge. Right from the first whistle we were exceptional, I'm absolutely delighted for the team to get that result."
It took the Huskies less than four minutes to open the scoring through Nick Markanich. NIU forced a turnover in the Marquette third and quickly jumped on the attack with Enrique Banuelos (Mexico City, Mexico/Virginia) clipping a ball up at the back post where Nick Markanich powered home a header to put NIU in front.
The goal was the 28th for Nick Markanich in his NIU career and his fifth of the season, he came into the night tied for fifth in the nation in goals scored this season. The assist for Banuelos was his team-leading fourth, he came into the contest tied for seventh in the country in assists.
Nick Markanich nearly added a second from a back post in the 14th minute, but his goalward effort was cleared off the line by the Marquette defense before the Golden Eagles scrambled the ball to safety.
In the 20th minute NIU doubled its advantage off a set piece. The Huskies won a corner and Roque Viegas Jr. (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Syracuse) floated it to the top of the six-yard box where Anthony Markanich climbed above the crowd a headed past Marquette goalkeeper Chandler Hallwood to put the Huskies in front, 2-0.
NIU continued to pressure the nationally ranked Golden Eagles and it paid off with a third in the 30th minute. Anthony Markanich had the ball wide on the left fired a low cross that was turned into the net by Marquette's Alan Salmeron to increase the Huskie lead to three.
On the hour-mark, NIU goalkeeper Martin Sanchez (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) made an outstanding kick save on a chance from inside the box by A.J. Franklin. It was one of three saves made by the Huskie goalkeeper in the contest as he picked up his third shutout of the season.
"If you are going to be a good team and you are going to challenge top teams, like Marquette, like teams in the MAC, you can't give up goals," said Swan. "The fact that we still haven't conceded at home is fantastic. I thought we were exceptional at the back, Martin's (Sanchez) leadership from the goalkeeping position, the center backs were talking, the full backs were very good in 1v1 situations. The goal scorers will grab the headlines, but I thought we were very, very good and composed at the back."
In the 61st minute, Nick Markanich nearly made it four as his shot from just outside the box cannoned down off the crossbar and away from goal.
The Huskies continued to pour forward in the late stages, recording six of their 10 second half shots in the final 20 minutes of a decisive victory over the Golden Eagles.
With the win, NIU has now won three consecutive games against ranked opposition, defeating 15th-ranked Akron, 3-0, on March 14, 2021, in DeKalb, 21st-ranked Akron, 3-1, on April 4, 2021, at Akron and Marquette tonight. The streak marks the first time since the United Soccer Coaches Poll began in 1996 that the Huskies have won three-straight against ranked foes.
It was also NIU's first win over Marquette since Taylor Cole's 102nd minute golden goal in a 3-2 win on Sept. 18, 2015 in Milwaukee.
Western Michigan 3, Dayton 0
?Box Score
Story Coming Soon...
Akron 1, Indiana 1
?Box Score
AKRON, Ohio - In an early-season men's soccer showdown the 16th-rated University of Akron and third-ranked Indiana (3-1-1) battled to a 1-1 double-overtime draw on Friday, Sept. 10 at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Both sides had opportunities to capture the game in overtime, but a pair of stellar diving saves from Akron senior goalkeeper Will Meyer (Solon, Ohio) persevered the result for the Zips (4-0-1).
The two heavyweights battled through a scoreless opening half with the Hoosiers edging the Zips in first-half shots, 6-3.
Akron turned up the attack in the second half en route to registering a 12-8 margin in second-half shots.
The Hoosiers broke the stalemate in the 66th minute (65:39) when Daniel Munie headed home a ball served into the box on a corner kick from Victor Bezerra.
The advantage was short-lived as senior Diogo Pacheco (Lisbon, Portugal) leveled the contest at one connecting on his team-leading third goal of the season at the 76:40 mark off an assist from freshman Jason Shokalook (Erie, Pa.). Pacheco has now scored a point in each of Akron's five games this season and extended his scoring streak to six straight contests dating back to last season.
Both sides had scoring chances over the balance of regulation and overtime, but neither team was able to capitalize as the showdown fittingly ended in a draw.
The Hoosiers posted a 17-16 edge in overall shots on the evening, including a 7-4 margin in shots on goal.
Pacheco and Shokalook led Akron with a game-high four shots apiece, while Indiana was directed by a four-shot performance from Bezerra.
Meyer finished the evening with a game-high six saves, for Akron while Roman Celentano made three stops for the Hoosiers.
West Virginia 1, Ohio State 0
?Box Score
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 5-ranked West Virginia University men's soccer team earned a 1-0 victory over Ohio State in front of 2,443 fans on Friday night in Morgantown.
In the second-largest crowd at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Mountaineer men's soccer history, WVU needed just a third-minute goal to earn the home result. Fifth-year senior defender Kevin Morris scored off a corner kick to give WVU an early lead that held throughout the night.
"That was probably our most fatigued performance of the season, but it was to be expected," WVU coach Dan Stratford said. "Today was just about doing whatever it takes. Of course, we want to continue to be a team that plays good soccer, and I'd love us to be clinical enough to score a second goal, but, honestly, the only thing that really counted for me today was that we got the win. The guys are really excited, and they are very deserving of the rest they are going to get in the next two or three days."
Morris got a head on a Mountaineer corner kick less than three minutes into the contest to give West Virginia (4-0-1) a 1-0 lead. Freshman defender Frederik Jorgensen earned the assist on the early tally.
From there, WVU, which played in its fourth consecutive home game on Friday night, collected four more shots in the half while largely keeping Ohio State (1-3-1) off the ball. The Mountaineers led by a goal after 45 minutes.
In the second half, West Virginia nearly doubled its lead when senior forward Adam Burchell got a good look at goal from inside the box. The chance, however, was saved by the Buckeye goalkeeper to keep the lead at just one.
Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky made two saves in the win, including one in the 64th minute when he flicked an OSU shot attempt over the bar. The Raymore, Missouri, native finished the night relatively unchallenged, earning his 23rd career shutout, good for No. 4 in program history.
The Mountaineers went on to hold an 8-4 advantage in shots in the win, while both teams recorded two shots on goal. WVU also had a season-high eight corner kicks, to OSU's four.
Burchell and fifth-year senior midfielder Pau Jimenez Albelda each had two shots to lead WVU.
With the win, West Virginia improved to 12-6-4 all-time against the Buckeyes, including 8-0-1 at home. Of note, Friday's fixture marked Ohio State's first trip to Morgantown since 2008.
The match also was the fifth time the WVU men's team played in front of more than 2,000 fans at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. WVU improved to 11-3 in front of home crowds of 1,500 or more since the facility opened in 2004.
"It was amazing," Stratford said. "It was an hour before kickoff and there were already 300-400 people here. Truly, this is becoming one of the best atmospheres in men's soccer in the country. They look like they're having fun, too, and we want them to keep coming back."
Georgia Southern 2, North Florida 1
?Box Score
STATESBORO, Ga. – Adam Davie and Jeremiah Luoma scored their first goals of the season on Friday evening, to lift the Eagles over North Florida 2-1. Georgia Southern improves to 3-2-0 on the season, while UNF falls to 1-3-1.
In the first half, UNF would open the scoring in the 21st minute, as Tom Luto played a ball through the middle of the field to Cormac Bagley. Bagley would beat Blaengsson off his right foot to give the Osprey a 1-0 lead heading to the half.
To begin the second half, Georgia Southern controlled the possession and had chances to score. In the 57th minute, Aidan Ferreira and Nikola Sotra connected to find Davie streaking into the box. Davie was able to get a foot on the ball and chip the UNF keeper to level the score.
Nearly 12 minutes later, Davie was once again involved in the buildup, finding Luoma on the back post to give the Eagles the lead late. Georgia Southern's defense was able to settle in during the final 20 minutes of play and shut down any North Florida chances.
The Eagles will now head to Clemson, South Carolina to face off against No. 2 Clemson.
?Belmont 2, Georgia State 1
?Box Score
NASHVILLE – Belmont snapped Georgia State's three-match winning streak with a 2-1 double overtime win over the Panthers on Friday night at E.S. Rose Park.
With just five minutes to go in double overtime, Belmont's (3-2) Liam O'Brien found the back of the net for the second time of the night to give the Bruins a third-straight win.
Georgia State (3-2) had entered the night with two straight road wins and proved to be the aggressor in the second half but couldn't find a game winning goal.
Belmont got on the board in the 23rd minute thanks to O'Brien's first goal of an assist from Niccolo Dagnoni.
The Bruins went into the half leading 1-0, but the Panthers quickly found the equalizer just seven minutes into the second half on freshman Bryan Silva's first career goal. Senior Salar Faryar earned the assist on the goal, his second assist of the season.
Belmont doubled-up the Panthers with 14 shots to just seven for GSU, including a 4-2 mark in overtime.
