RICHMOND, Va. (October 5, 2022)

In Short
Loyola University Chicago (5-2-3, 1-2-1) persevered and found the late equalizer Wednesday night for a 2-2 draw against VCU (0-5-5, 0-0-3), earning a hard-fought point in the first-ever meeting between the two teams. Oscar Dueso's header in the 87th minute capped a second-half onslaught from the Ramblers, who finished the night with a 31-9 shot advantage.
 
Head Coach Steve Bode's Thoughts…
"Our team showed a lot of resilience tonight to come from behind to secure a point on the road. Getting points in the A-10 is difficult to come by, and on the road it's even tougher. I'm proud of the effort and fight our team showed tonight."

How It Happened
Loyola faced a one-goal deficit in each half, despite controlling possession and pace for most of the night.
 
VCU grabbed the 1-0 lead in the 37th minute with a left-footed strike from the top corner of the box by Jean-Claude Bile, who bent the ball into the upper 90 and out of Simon Jillson's reach.
 
The Ramblers answered in the final 30 seconds of the opening stanza, tying the score at 1-1 going into halftime. Great individual play from redshirt-senior midfielder Billy Hency set up the first goal for freshman midfielder Ben Bischof, who came on as a late substitute. Hency grounded a cross, which was blocked by the keeper, and Bischof caught the rebound with his left foot and slotted it through a sea of Ram defenders into the back of the net.
 
However, the Rams quickly responded in the opening moments of the second half. Jillson made a save off a set piece, but VCU's Philip Klomp was in position to sneak a shot through, lifting the Rams to a 2-1 advantage.
 
From there, the Ramblers mounted heavy pressure and blitzed VCU with a flurry of shots over the final 20-plus minutes of action.
 
Loyola was finally rewarded for the incredible effort with Dueso's goal, who has now scored in back-to-back games. The header came off a beautiful play starting with Bryan Silver, who found Benni Hofmann rushing forward toward the left post. Hofmann slotted a pass through to Hency, who then lifted the ball to Dueso in front of the keeper.
 
Inside The Numbers

• Loyola logged a season-high in shots (31), shots on goal (10) and corner kicks (11)
• The Ramblers have outshot their opponent in eight of 10 contests
• Loyola outshot VCU 22-5 in the second half and held an 11-2 overall edge in corner tries
• Dueso scored his third goal of the season and ninth of his career. He's the first Loyola player to score in back-to-back appearances this season
• Bischof logged his first career goal in his fifth appearance this season. He's the 10th different Rambler to find the back of the net this fall
• Hency registered two assists for the fifth time of his career, running his season total to five assists
• With 22 career assists, Hency is one shy of moving into fourth place in the Loyola record book
• Hency also recorded his 70th career point which came in his 72nd appearance as a Rambler
• Hofmann notched his first assist of the season and fifth of his career
• Jillson finished with three saves, running his season total to 22
• VCU keeper John Ermini had eight saves
• Loyola recorded its third draw in five road matches this season (0-2-3)

Up Next
Loyola will turn its attention to Saturday's home match against No. 16 Dayton, which begins a four-game homestand for the Ramblers. The match on Saturday is slated for 3 p.m. in Rogers Park. The Flyers (8-0-2, 2-0-2), who currently hold their highest rank in program history, played to a 1-1 draw at St. Bonaventure on Wednesday.