DES MOINES, Iowa – After playing its previous four contests on the road, the Drake men's soccer team returns to Cownie Soccer Complex for a pair of home games this week. The Bulldogs start the week against the UMKC Kangaroos on Tuesday before hosting the DePaul Blue Demons on Saturday. Both matches will have a 7 p.m. first kick.
Drake (3-2-0) is looking to bounce back after losing at Butler, 4-0, this past Saturday. The Bulldogs allowed a season-high four goals as Butler scored two goals in each half to cruise to the win.
“It has been a solid start to the season for us,” said interim head coach Gareth Smith. “It was a tough game against Butler, who is a good BIG EAST team and have had a strong start to their season as well. Although the result isn't indicative of the performance, it does highlight we still have room to improve in a few different areas that we have been strong in since the start of the season.”
UMKC (2-1-1) will play its fourth consecutive Missouri Valley Conference opponent in Drake as the Kangaroos have earned wins over SIUE and Central Arkansas and one tie with Missouri State. UMKC's lone loss came in the season-opener against No. 22 Omaha. Roberto Albuquerque and Pandelis Popgeorgiev pace the Kangaroos' offense with two goals each.
DePaul (1-4) will welcome crosstown opponent, UIC, on Thursday afternoon before traveling to Des Moines this weekend. The Blue Demons have a win over Fordham with losses to Bradley, Duke, Elon and Omaha. Simon Megally has scored a team-leading three goals this season.
“We have a tight turn around this week, but we hope to tighten up in a few aspects of our performance before heading into two difficult games with UMKC and another BIG EAST opponent in DePaul,” Smith said. “We hope to have 1-2 more experienced players back in the lineup, who missed these past few games. We are making progress and just need to execute better on our game plans, especially in the middle to final third of the field.”
Drake begins MVC play next week as the Bulldogs travel to Evansville, Ind. to take on the Purple Aces on Sept. 26 at 6 p.m.
