DES MOINES, IOWA ? Twenty-nine different players appeared for the Drake men's soccer team in its opening exhibition match against Truman State Saturday at the Cownie Soccer Complex. The Drake Bulldogs fell to the Truman State Bulldogs, 3-1.

“Our goal was to give as many minutes to 29 different, healthy, guys today and we achieved that.,” said Drake head coach Sean Holmes. “Preseason is always a time for me to be concerned with development and progress and less about results. The only way young players learn is by doing and today some of them learned the hard way.”

Sophomore forward Garrett Webb (Prairie Village Kan.) scored an unassisted goal in the eighth minute (7:22) by firing a shot from the top of the box, which crossed in front of Truman State goalkeeper Kyle Talbot but just out of his reach.

“I thought some of the soccer we played was very fluid and clever and in general we defended well. I was very pleased with the starting 11's ability to deal with the frenetic pace of the opening 25 minutes,” said Holmes “I felt that we created some awfully good chances. “

Freshman Hunter Kennedy (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) led the Bulldogs with two shots, coming off the bench at forward. Both teams had eight shots.

All four Drake goalkeepers saw double-digit minutes in the match. Sophomore Tom Spiess (Roseville, Minn.) made the only two saves of the game for Drake, logging 22:29 minutes.

Sophomore goalkeeper Michael Drozd (Hartwood Heights, Ill.) played 32:00 in goal for Drake, leading the quartet in minutes.

“The next challenge beginning tomorrow morning is to figure out who is going to be in that next seven or eight off the bench and can produce consistently,” concluded
Holmes.

Truman State battled back from a 1-0 deficit by scoring three goals in the final 12 minutes and 30 seconds of action.

Drake continues its exhibition slate on Tuesday by hosting St. Ambrose at the Cownie Soccer Complex. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.