Men's Soccer Shutout at Loyola Marymount

September 26, 2014

The Grand Canyon University men's soccer team (2-4-1) dropped a 4-0 decision to Loyola Marymount (3-3-2) tonight in a non-conference matchup at Sullivan Field in Los Angeles. The Lions scored twice in each half and allowed just three second half shots to the Antelopes to come away with the victory.

We lost the game tonight to a very good Loyola Marymount team," said head coach Petar Draksin. "The frustrating part is that we essentially caused three of those goals. Obviously the own goal in the first half, but the next two were the result of our own errors. It is very difficult to come back from a hole like that. And it's very frustrating because we are better team than that, but we just have to put this one behind us."

The physical game saw 33 fouls committed between the two teams.

The Lions held the overall advantage in shots, 12-7, although GCU put four of those attempts on goal. Alberto Sanchez Garcia and Mark Serjeant each had two shots for the Lopes, with both of Garcia's on target.

On an LMU free kick just inside midfield in the 22nd minute, the Lopes were charged with an own goal that gave the Lions an early 1-0 advantage in the game. LMU made it a two-goal lead in the 36th minute when Antonio Porreco drilled a shot from inside the box past a diving Kendyl Day.

Despite the score after 45 minutes, the first half was evenly played between the two teams, with each collecting four shots. The Lions had three on target, while the Lopes put two on goal.

A yellow card issued to Jaime Olabarria in the box set up a penalty kick for LMU, which Craig Nitti successfully converted to put the Lions ahead 3-0 six minutes into the second half. Nearly 20 minutes later, Adrien Perez connected on a shot into the far right post to make the score 4-0 in favor of LMU.

The Lions collected eight shots over the final 45 minutes as they kept the pressure on GCU's defense.

GCU will return home for a non-conference meeting with Cal State Fullerton on Sunday at GCU Soccer Field. Kickoff is slated for 5 p.m. and fans unable to make it can follow the action via live video and stats at www.gculopes.com.

"We have a tough game against Fullerton on Sunday," added Draksin. "They (Fullerton) did not have game today, so we have to get ready for them. But the positive is that we are on our home field."

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