DES MOINES, IOWA - In what
may go down as a defining statement game, the Drake men's soccer team clawed
out a 1-1 double-overtime tie versus No. 12 UC Irvine on Saturday (Oct. 2) at
the Cownie Soccer Complex as part of the Ralph Gross Alumni Classic.
Playing before a strong contingent of their alumni, the Bulldogs held
the nation's seventh-best scoring offense to only one goal en route to moving
their ledger to 4-5-1, while tallying only the third goal against the Anteaters,
whose record dropped to 8-1-1.
"I think tonight was a fair result," Drake head coach Sean Holmes commented. "The two goals really jump started the
game to action as the first 55 minutes was still an interesting game, but not
super exciting. Given a month ago
we would have found a way to lose, any time you can invite a top-12 team in
the country to your place and be as young as we are and get a result, in
arguably a game we could have won, is a sign of progress."
UC Irvine came in the contest having only allowed two goals all season
and registering eight shutouts. The
Anteaters used their experience to post a 20-10 shot advantage in the affair.
The two sides battled in a back-and-forth contest in the initial stanza
with neither side being able to crack the scoring column.
Gray Bailey broke the stalemate in the 56th minute (55:15) heading in a
corner by Christian Hernandez for his third goal of the season to give UC Irvine
a 1-0 advantage.
The Anteaters received a dose of their own medicine just over two
minutes later at the 57:41 mark when junior Thomas Ostrander (Fort Dodge, Iowa/St. Edmond Catholic) played the
feed from senior Evan Harrison
(Evansville, Ind./Reitz Memorial) off a corner by junior Michael Thaden (West Des
Moines, Iowa/Valley) into the lower right corner of the net for his team-leading
fourth goal of the year to square the match at one.
"If every kid on our team played with the same passion, commitment and
emotion as Thomas (Ostrander), we would be a better team," said Holmes.
The Bulldogs then dug in defensively and held the high-octane UC Irvine offense
off the scoreboard en route to collecting the tie.
"I think our back four continue to be more stable at the back and that
after 10 games of our grueling pre-conference schedule that 4-5-1 is an honest
reflection of our ability," Holmes stated. "What is most interesting is everyone comes into league play
at 0-0, so essentially this is part two of our season and the schedule we have
played will reward our RPI and make us mentally prepared for Valley play. As of now we're still the reigning
champions of the conference and that will affect our mindset moving forward."
Both sides had excellent scoring chances both in regulation and overtime
but neither was able to capitalize.
Amani Walker paced all players with six shots, while Drake was directed
by a three-shot performance from Ostrander.
Redshirt junior Jordan Kadlec
(Hiawatha, Iowa/Cedar Rapids Kennedy) was bloodied in the 106th (105:41) minute
and sat on the ground for several minutes getting treatment but dusted himself
off and refused to come out of the game finishing the tilt with a game-high
nine saves. Andrew Fontein pulled
in four stops for the Anteaters.
"Jordan (Kadlec) getting cut in the second overtime and still battling
through is a testament to him," Holmes explained.
Holmes also praised redshirt sophomore Jordan Stanley (Roscoe, Ill./Harlem), who made his first collegiate
start on the defensive backline for Drake.
"Jordan (Stanley) for his first college start to step up and play so
well is a credit to him," Holmes commented.
The Bulldogs now turn their attention to Missouri Valley Conference play
as Drake opens league action hosting Evansville next Saturday (Oct. 9) at 7:00
p.m. at the Cownie Soccer Complex.
