- The Western Illinois men's soccer team battled back from an early 1-0 deficit and scored in each half to defeat Eastern Illinois 2-1 Saturday afternoon in the Ohio Valley Conference opener.
Eastern Illinois opened the scoring in the 19th minute when Lucas Comitre found the back of the net off an assist from Bernardo Hanel.
The Leathernecks responded in the 33rd minute when Xavier Gagnon scored off an assist from Ty Duax, bringing Western Illinois level at 1-1 before halftime.
After a scoreless stretch to open the second half, Western Illinois took the lead in the 83rd minute. Fabrizio Kasperiski finished a pass from Maksim Palisak to put the Leathernecks ahead 2-1.
The Leathernecks' defense held EIU off the scoreboard over the final minutes. Harvey Bolland came up with a huge save in the 85th minute as Western Illinois protected its one-goal lead through the final whistle.
EDINBURG, Texas - The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's soccer earned their first point in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) standings after battling to a scoreless draw with the reigning champion Lindenwood Lions at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex Saturday.
The Vaqueros (2-2-2, 0-0-1 OVC) relied on sophomore goalkeeper Conrad Knight, who notched his second clean sheet of the season while recording three saves. He helped UTRGV shut down a potent Lions offense that entered the match averaging 1.75 goals per game this season.
Offensively, freshman Mauricio Arreguin led the charge for the Vaqueros, tallying two shots, both on goal. Alongside Arreguin, junior Alvaro Abeal and senior Malang Mandiang each put a shot on frame in the match. Arreguin and Abeal both recorded career-high marks in shots and shots on goal in the match.
In addition, the stout backline of junior Tobias Buch, sophomore Emmanuel Gore Bi, and freshman Victor van der Aa played the entire 90 minutes in the shutout.
Goalkeeper Quinn Closson kept the Lions (3-2-4, 0-0-1 OVC) in the match, recording four saves to help the Lions earn their first point of OVC play.
UTRGV is now unbeaten in three all-time meetings against Lindenwood (1-0-2).
In the first 45 minutes, the Vaqueros worked into the wind but pushed through to create some great opportunities in the frame.
Abeal started another threatening run, finding Taj in the attacking half. Taj sent a through ball to Arreguin.
Arreguin recorded his first shot on goal after dribbling through three Lions to enter the left side of the box. His strike was deflected by Lindenwood goalkeeper Quinn Closson in the 10th minute.
In the 16th minute, Arreguin received a nice cross from sophomore Pharr native Dylan Hernandez who launched the ball across the pitch just outside the box on the left side. Arreguin proceeded to cross it into the box, just missing the cutting Abeal.
Abeal started another great run, delivering a solid pass to Taj in the attacking half. Taj sent a nice through pass to Arreguin who couldn't convert on a shot opportunity. Fifth-year captain Eduardo De Oliveira took possession of the deflection and sent a cross into the box for Taj, whose header missed wide left.
The second half continued a tight, aggressive battle for possession. Shots were limited and opportunities were rarely presented for either side.
However, in the 64th minute, Abeal once again created a solid opportunity with his footwork, deking a defender on the right side of the box and finding open space and delivering a strike that was stopped by Closson.
The Vaqueros and Lions both recorded eight shots in the match with the Vaqueros holding a slight 4-3 advantage in shots on goal. Knight's three saves are his highest in a shutout this season.
HCU 2, UIW 1
HOUSTON - Houston Christian University began the Ohio Valley Conference slate with an impressive 2-1 victory over longtime rival University of the Incarnate Word at Sorrels Field on Saturday evening. A defensive first half opened up as the second half progressed in the latest chapter between the two I-10 rivals with HCU's win knotting the all-time series with the Cardinals.
The first 45 minutes saw just six shots total, with each team holding strong in their final third. The only shot on goal came from Clarenns Sainrimat with 45 seconds remaining in the half, an attempt saved by Victor Salmeron.
It didn't take long for the second half to turn to a quicker pace. With just over six minutes gone, Cezar Onut was clattered in the box, drawing a penalty after review. Ryan Okerayi would put a laser into the bottom left corner, giving the Huskies the upper hand, 1-0.
HCU then put together five shots over the next 11 minutes, with Okerayi nearly doubling the lead in the 65th minute on a hot shot saved by Salmeron to his right. Exactly three minutes later, the lead would indeed double, as Marcos Moore claimed a Okerayi header out of mid-air with a right-footed strike into the back of the net to put the hosts ahead by two in the 68th minute.
UIW pulled one back just under four minutes later, as Juan Monreal outworked a couple of defenders with some fancy footwork before nicking a shot past Harvey Heeps to make the count 2-1 with just over 18 minutes to play.
From there, the Huskies continued their solid work in the back, holding off several late runs by the Cardinals, which included a last second missile from Aarush Kamath that went wide left.
The Huskies outshot the Cardinals 16-6 on the evening, including 6-2 on goal while also earning seven corners to four for the visitors which included a 4-0 advantage in the second half.
Okerayi put home his third goal of the year and recorded his second assist on the goal by Marcos Moore. The goal by Moore was the first of his career. Harvey Heeps made one stop on the night to earn his third win of the season.
Monreal got his first goal of the season on his only shot attempt of the evening. Salmeron made four saves for the Cardinals, who fall to 1-5-1 overall and 0-1-0 in the OVC.
SIUE 3, SOUTHERN INDIANA 1
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE men's soccer delighted a Homecoming crowd of 2,766 with a 3-1 win over Southern Indiana Saturday night at Korte Stadium in the Ohio Valley Conference opener for both sides.
Playing as the 66ers, SIUE improved to 3-4-1 overall, wasted no time in taking a lead as Ryley Gibbs put his second of the year in the back of the net after Dominic Bartoni's initial shot was turned away by Southern Indiana goalkeeper Jacob English.
USI's Edin Cvorovic headed home in the 26th minute to tie the game and the contest went to half at 1-1.
It was another early goal for SIUE at the start of the second half. After a push into the box, SIUE had two shots blocked, one from Amous Boum Nlend and another from Barotoni. The second of which was deemed to be a handball in the box, affording SIUE with a penalty kick. Bartoni buried the kick to make it 2-1.
Shortly after the Screaming Eagles were dealt a blow when Bryce Seigel was sent off after receiving a red card for a late push following a stoppage in play.
The 66ers made several charges on goal but couldn't find a third until the 86th minute. Ben Perkins scored his second career goal after he banged in a rebound after Juan Rodas had a shot saved by English.
SIUE outshot USI 15-12 overall and put eight shots on goal. English finished with four saves for USI, which fell to 0-5-3 overall.
66ers goalkeeper Ioannis Koupepides made two saves for SIUE.