In Short…
The Loyola Ramblers captured its first victory of 2018 with a 1-0 win over Cleveland State. Freshman Vasco Cardoso found the net for the first time in his collegiate career, with freshman Fabian Becerra recording the assist.
 
Coach Jones' Thoughts…
"I think the first win of the season is the hardest one to get. We played hard today and we played good soccer. It was very hot out here, and we played on Friday against a very good Western Michigan team. Our [players] are banged up a little bit and it was nice to not play Saturday or Sunday, giving us an extra day. I thought we played well and I thought we deserved to win today.
 
How it Happened
RS-senior Grant Stoneman had a golden opportunity to put a dent in the scoreboard early when he put a header on net in the seventh minute off a corner kick from fellow captain Fabian Lifka. Vikings' keeper Alex Gyerman made another save 11 minutes later when he grabbed Becerra's shot from 16 yards out.
 
Junior Josh Lagudah wasn't tested often, but he answered the bell in the 20^th minute with a sprawling save that preserved the Ramblers' lead. The shot on net ended up being the only one for the Vikings on Monday afternoon.
 
Fresh onto the field as a substitution, Vasco Cardoso got a feed from Becerra in the 28^th minute and ripped a shot from 12 yards out at the near post to put the Ramblers up 1-0. The shot on goal was the Ramblers third of the match and the first that found the back of the net this season.
 
Becerra had a great chance of his own to open the second half when he got a feed from about seven yards out and ripped it on net. The rest of the second half showcased physical play from both sides. The officials issued 25 total fouls and four yellow cards, capped off by a red card to CSU's Ivan Babic in the 89^th minute.
 
The final chance came in the 85^th minute when Liam Woehrle dribbled past a few defenders in the box and fed it over to Lifka, but Gyerman was in good position to make the save.
 
A Look at the Numbers
-En route to outscoring the Vikings 1-0, the Ramblers outshot Cleveland State 10-3, as well as shots on goal at an 8-1 clip.
-Six Ramblers registered a shot on goal, including Lifka and Becerra who each tallied two.
-Junior Josh Lagudah stopped the one shot on net he faced and was credited with his first collegiate shutout on Monday night.
 
Up Next
The Ramblers are off until Friday when the team hosts the Hampton Inn at Loyola Chicago Classic set for the duration of Labor Day Weekend. The Ramblers square off against Loyola Marymount on Aug. 31 at 7:30 p.m., and wrap-up the weekend against Oakland on Sept. 2 at 5 p.m. Both matches coincide with the women's soccer team as doubleheaders.