OCTOBER 12, 2011

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Seniors Thomas Ostrander (Fort Dodge, Iowa/St. Edmond Catholic) and Matt Kuhn (Raytown, Mo./Raytown South) both scored goals sparking the Drake men's soccer team to a 2-1 road victory at Evansville (5-5, 0-2 MVC) in a key Missouri Valley Conference showdown on Wednesday (Oct. 12).

"I'm ecstatic that we were able to a get a MVC road win, those are a precious commodity and when you throw in the fact that we didn't particularly play well it makes it all the more gratifying," Bulldog head coach Sean Holmes commented.

"We were lethargic for a big stretch of the game, but we still managed to eke out a win, this is the hallmark of a championship-contending team.  Most people win when they play well and for us to not play well and still win is equally an accomplishment."

Ostrander gave the Bulldogs (8-4-1, 2-0 MVC) the early 1-0 advantage on the strength of his fourth goal of the season at the 1:52 mark.  Ostrander knocked in the rebound off of senior Hunter Kennedy's (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington) initial strike.  The assist was the second of the year for Kennedy.

Evansville outshot Drake in the initial stanza, 10-6, despite the Bulldogs owning a 6-5 margin in shots on goal.

"The real momentum swing came near the end of the first half when he had a goal called back on an offsides call," said Holmes.  "I thought at that point if we got up 2-0 we'd be home free, but a young Evansville team battled bravely for the entire 90 minutes."

Charlie Macias evened the score at one in the 54th minute (53:08) registering his first goal of the season off an assist from Jarrett Robbins.

Kuhn recorded what proved to be the game-winning tally at the 61:34 mark to push the Bulldogs back into the lead, 2-1.  He collected his team-leading seventh goal of the year on a breakaway finished to the back left corner of the net on what was Drake's lone shot of the second half.  Kennedy earned the assist on the tally.

"The goals from our two seniors in Thomas (Ostrander) and Matt (Kuhn) were book ended by some clever play in the front half created both times from fellow senior Hunter Kennedy," Holmes explained.

Senior Jordan Kadlec (Hiawatha, Iowa/Kennedy), the current MVC Defensive Player of the Week, pulled in a game- and season-high eight saves for Drake, while his counterpart Eric Teppen collected five saves.

"Jordan (Kadlec) was clearly the man of the match and despite our goals against average, I think he is the best goalkeeper in the Valley," stated Holmes.

The Purples Aces posted a 15-7 advantage in shots on the evening, with Ryan Stallings registered a game-high four shots.  Ostrander led the Bulldogs with three shots.

Holmes praised the work off the bench to help Drake garnering a key road win.

"We got strong contributions from a number of players off the bench and that is what it takes to win."

"Going on a 10-hour road trip to play on someone else's field and enduring a torrential downpour for much of the game we found a way to persevere," Holmes explained. "This is the kind of game we lost in September but have found a way to win in October and that bodes well for the rest of the season.  More importantly we were able to get on the bus with everyone healthy and intact."

Holmes was equally complimentary of the Purple Aces and their coaching staff.

"I think their coaching staff has done a really good job bringing a very young team to maturity."

Drake returns to action on Saturday (Oct. 15) as the Bulldogs close out their non-conference schedule with a 3:00 p.m. game at Oral Roberts.