PEORIA, ILL. -- Drake freshman Cory Pitlik and senior Istvan Wilhelms scored for the Drake men's soccer team with less than 10 minutes remaining in regulation to defeat Bradley 2-0 in Peoria Tuesday night.  

"We created a number of very good chances which was very pleasing and delighted to see Cory Pitlik and Istvan Wilhelms open their goal scoring account for the seasons," said head coach Gareth Smith.

Pitlik took a shot 25 yards from the goal to put the Bulldogs on the board in the 84th minute and score his first collegiate goal with a rocket into the side of the netting. He tallied three shots and one shot on goal in his 32 minutes on the pitch.  

In the 88th minute, junior Juan Louis passed to Wilhelms, who scored on a counterattack by eluding one defender with a quick strike. The goal was Wilhelms third career goal and Louis' second career assist.  

"We worked through a tricky first half as we played against the elements as well as Bradley's approach to press us higher up the field. We had some challenges playing through the lines but credit to the guys for their patience, resilience, and game management," said Smith. "We knew the second half would allow us to stretch Bradley more and play through the thirds of the field more effectively. I was pleased with the progress in different aspects of our performance tonight, especially our patience and ability to circulate the ball and our attacking threat from overloads in wide areas."

Drake (1-1-1, 1-1-1 MVC) tallied 16 shots, coming from eight Bulldogs and four shots on goal in its first win of the season. Senior Bradan Allen was the first to attempt a shot for the Bulldogs and tallied three shots in the end. 

Smith said, "Excellent performance from both Bradan Allen and Loren Altman who were exceptional in their ability to create attacks from deeper areas. Yet again, Lucas Bartlett and TC Anderson were exceptional leading our back line and managing Bradley's direct offense effectively.". 

Bradley (2-2, 1-2 MVC) attempted five shots against Drake with one shot on goal but was unable to get past keeper Jared Brown.  

Drake returns home to take on Loyola March 18 at 2 p.m. in Drake Stadium.