In Short…
Loyola wins its third straight MVC match with one remaining. Junior
Aidan Megally netted two goals to propel the Ramblers to its largest win of the season against a DI opponent.
Coach Jones' Thoughts
"I'm just so proud of our seniors," head coach Neil Jones said. "It's a great group of seven guys and it's been an amazing four years for us as a staff and having them as a part of our team. It's always fun to win, but it's especially nice to win on senior night. I'm just really proud of the guys' effort tonight."
How It Happened
Two consecutive early corner kicks put Loyola in position for the first two shot attempts of the match – a header from
Mike Riley and a shot from inside the box from
Aidan Megally. The two teams foreshadowed the physical match early with both teams combining for seven fouls within the first 22 minutes.
Megally started the high-scoring performance with a point-blank shot from about 16 yards out in the 25
th minute. The Park Ridge, Ill. native got a nice feed from
Tyler Biggs and ripped it off the post and in for his second tally of the season.
Billy Hency notched a header on goal in the 29
th minute, and Megally had a shot blocked in the 34
th to round out the Ramblers' shots in the first half.
The scoring and the cautions escalated in the second stanza. Evansville's Ryan Harris picked up his second yellow card of the match in the 56
th minute, giving Loyola a man-advantage for the remainder of the way. The second half had a combined six yellow cards to push the game's total to seven.
The Maroon and Gold took full advantage of the extra player, beginning with
Fabian Becerra doubling the Rambler lead in the 71
st minute. The Conroe, Texas native was set up beautifully by
Tucker Stephenson on cross from right on the goal line.
Megally scored one more goal to add some extra insurance for the Ramblers down the stretch. The 86
th minute play developed when
Ryan Walker had the ball and found a wide open Megally by himself in the box. Megally capitalized for the icing on the cake in the Ramblers' 3-0 win.
A Look At The Numbers
-
Aidan Megally's two-goal performance is the Ramblers' first against a DI opponent this season. Megally also posted season-highs in shots (4) and shots on goal (2).
-
Josh Lagudah added his seventh shutout of the season, and his second without making a save. His scoreless minute streak in goal is now up to 402:11.
-Loyola added three points to its MVC lead, and now have 11 points with one MVC match remaining. They are four points ahead of Missouri State, who has two conference games left on the schedule.
-The Ramblers sit at 3-0-2 in conference play heading into next Saturday's (Oct. 27) tilt at Central Arkansas. The program has never gone unbeaten in conference play.
Up Next
Loyola plays its final regular season match at Loyola Soccer Park on Tuesday (Oct. 23) vs. Northern Illinois. The match against the Huskies will be celebrated with a Cancer Awareness theme.