CHICAGO (September 11, 2021)
In Short…
Three different Ramblers found the back of the net as the Loyola University Chicago men's soccer team picked up a 3-0 win over visiting Western Illinois (0-5-0) this evening at Loyola Soccer Park. Tonight's result sees the Maroon & Gold close non-conference play at 3-2-0 overall.
Head Coach Neil Jones' Thoughts…
"Happy to get a win against a Western Illinois team that threw us a curveball with a different lineup and shape than what we had in the scouting report. Credit to them for coming in, working hard, and making it difficult for us, especially in the first 15-20 minutes. We really wanted to focus on bouncing back from two tough results and put in a professional performance. It's good to get a shutout and a win."
How It Happened
Loyola withstood some early pressure from Western Illinois in the game's opening stages, as Luke Duball forced a stop out of graduate student goalkeeper
Marcel Kampman five minutes in. Kampman came up on a pair of occasions in the 35
th minute, turning away Duball again before parrying away Daisuke Otsuka's attempt off the resulting rebound to keep things scoreless.
The Loyola netminder's saves seemed to give a lift to the attack for the Maroon & Gold, who broke the deadlock just two minutes later. Freshman
Benni Hofmann delivered a corner kick into the center of the box that was headed down by junior
Alex Moskal before falling to the feet of redshirt junior
Michael Hong. Hong did the rest, directing into the back of the net from close range to give the Ramblers a 1-0 lead.
Just four minutes after opening the scoring, Loyola doubled the gap a counterattack. Freshman
John Gates laid off a centering pass for senior
Billy Hency, who drilled his right-footed effort from 14 yards out past Seanan Main, the Western Illinois goalkeeper, to send Loyola into halftime with a 2-0 advantage.
Loyola continued to heap on pressure coming out of the intermission, dominating possession for large spells of the second half. Any hopes for a Leatherneck rally were put to bed in the 62
nd minute when junior
Oscar Dueso headed a cross from Hofmann in at the far post, pushing the lead to 3-0 and Loyola back over the .500 mark for the season.
Looking At The Numbers
- Hong's opening tally, which proved to be the game-winner, marked the redshirt junior's first goal of the season.
- Hency added his team-high four goal, while Dueso recorded his second goal of 2021 during the second half.
- Both Moskal and Hofmann were credited with two assists apiece, while Gates also notched a helper on Hency's goal.
- Kampman was strong in net, tallying three saves, all during the first half, as Loyola secured its first shutout of the season.
Up Next
Loyola opens Missouri Valley Conference play on Saturday, September 18 when it takes on Evansville in a 5 p.m. kickoff at Arad McCutchan Stadium in Evansville, Ind.
