ROCHERSTER, Mich. – The Loyola Chicago men's soccer team fell, 2-1, to its former Horizon League foe, Oakland, Tuesday evening on the road. The match was knotted at 1-1 before Oakland capitalized on a penalty kick to take a late lead in the 84^th minute.

With its first Atlantic 10 match on the horizon, the Ramblers stand 1-4-1 after a taxing non-conference slate.

"We didn't get the result we wanted tonight but I'm proud of the way our team fought and responded," said Loyola Head Coach Steve Bode. "We're growing and improving every game. It will be good to get back to Loyola Soccer Park on Saturday and start fresh with Atlantic 10 conference play ahead of us."

How it Happened
Ben Bischof recorded the matches' first shot attempt in the sixth minute. He sent his strike low and center where Oakland's (3-4-0, 1-0-0 HL) keeper, Aiden Smith, corralled the ball. Through the rest of the first half, Luka Ivancic and Angel Mendez, who was on-target, also had opportunities to strike but none found the back of the net. Meanwhile, the Ramblers' backline didn't allow a single shot on-goal in the first 45 minutes of play.

Oakland had the edge coming out of the locker room, sending off two unanswered shots before scoring the go-ahead goal in the 64^th minute behind Lejs Plicanic's strike. Loyola Chicago responded well though, posting four-straight shots, including a shot on-target from Ivancic in the 59^th minute, to begin knocking on the door.  

Mendez scored his first NCAA goal in the 75^th minute to level the contest, 1-1. Petar Janjic was credited the assist as Loyola Chicago was right back in the game. In fact, the Maroon and Gold didn't allow the Grizzlies to register a single shot in the final 41 minutes of the match.

However, in the 84^th minute, a Loyola foul in the penalty box allowed Oakland to regain the advantage. With time running out, Oakland's Andrew Darakdjian scored the game-winning PK. No more shots were tallied as the Ramblers lost, 2-1.  

Notes

• The 'Blers racked up nine shots with four being on-target.
• Oakland, who recently shutout Michigan State by three goals, had seven shots with just two landing on-goal.
• Ivancic was one shot shy of tying his career-high of four. His three shots were a match-high.
• Bischof and Mendez were close behind with two shots.
• Mendez, a JUCO transfer student-athlete, scored his first career NCAA goal in the loss.  

Up Next
Loyola Chicago opens A-10 play this Saturday (Sept. 21) as it plays host to Dayton at Hoyne Field. Kickoff is slated for 3 p.m. CT with the action streaming live on ESPN+.