DES MOINES, Iowa - In a showdown reminiscent of battles past between two former Missouri Valley Conference men's soccer rivals, Drake (2-7-2) surrendered a second-half goal in its showdown with No. 9 Creighton (9-1-1) and was unable to net the equalizer as the Bluejays edged the Bulldogs, 1-0, on Tuesday (Oct. 7) at the Cownie Soccer Complex.
Junior Eric Williams (West Des Moines, Iowa) registered the game's initial shot on goal just 1:19 in the affair, but his attempt was pulled in for the save by Creighton goalkeeper Connor Sparrow.
The Bluejays had back-to-back scoring opportunities at the 13:18 and 13:20 marks, respectively, as Sean Kim's shot hit the post before the attempt on the rebound by Timo Pitter nailed the crossbar.
Redshirt junior Alec Bartlett (Overland Park, Kan./St. James Academy) had his shot attempt for the Bulldogs in the 17th minute (16:57) hit the crossbar as well to thwart the scoring chance.
The two sides exchanged shots the remainder of the half with the Bluejays outshooting Drake in the initial stanza, 7-4, including 2-1 on net.
The Bulldogs persevered through the initial challenge by Creighton to begin the second half and settled in defensively.
Drake caught a break at the 54:18 mark when an offsides call negated a goal by Fabian Herbers for the Bluejays.
Bartlett followed by recording the Bulldogs first shot of the final stanza in the 59th minute (58:03); again Sparrow made a save on the attempt.
Creighton broke the stalemate cracking the scoring column at the 65:29 mark when a diving Herbers headed in his team-leading sixth goal of the season off an assist from Jose Ribas.
The Bulldogs unleashed three consecutive shots on goal at the 75:43, 77:09 and 77:47 marks, respectively, from redshirt freshman Nick Manzoni (Orono, Minn./Orono) and freshman Gabe Edel (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) with the best scoring opportunity coming from redshirt sophomore James Grunert (Muskego, Wis./Muskego). All three attempts were saved by Sparrow.
Sophomore Mueng Sunday (Coralville, Iowa/Iowa City West) gave Drake another strike in the 88th minute (87:08), an attempt that went wide.
The Bulldogs continued to press the attack forward and Bartlett got off the Bulldogs' last shot of the game at the 89:37 mark. Sparrow, who finished with seven saves to complete the shutout, pulled in the attempt for a save.
Shots were nearly even in the second half with the Bluejays bettering Drake, 9-8, en route to posting 16-12 margin on the evening, including a slim 8-7 difference in shots on goal.
The Bulldogs received a three- and two-shot performance from Bartlett and Grunert. Kim paced Creighton with a game-high four shots.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Darrin MacLeod (Waterloo, Ontario/Resurrection Catholic) finished the affair registering seven saves for Drake.
The Bulldogs return to action on Saturday (Oct. 11) welcoming Loyola to the Cownie Soccer Complex for a key MVC showdown. Game time is slated for 7:00 p.m.
