Panthers Win Again, Top Wright State 3-0
MILWAUKEE - Senior Robbie Boyd and junior Laurie Bell each scored a goal and picked up an assist to lead the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team to an impressive 3-0 victory over Wright State University on a rainy Saturday night at Engelmann Stadium.
The Panthers (9-0-1, 2-0-0 Horizon League) opened up a close game against the Raiders (3-5-1, 1-1-0 Horizon League) with a pair of second-half goals to cruise to the victory and extend their unbeaten streak to 10 games.
"Before the game we talked about wanting to play quality soccer," UWM head coach Kris Kelderman said. "With the rain pouring and everything like that, it was going to be one of those games where you just have to roll up your sleeves and battle sometimes. The game got a little chippy at moments, but I thought we played really well in certain spots."
Freshman goalkeeper Liam Anderson picked up his fifth shutout of the season by making three saves. He also recorded an assist on a goal by junior Rami Younes off a long goal kick, the first goalie to record an assist for Milwaukee since 2006.
"The one thing that we have been pretty proud of is our balance," Kelderman said. "The defense has been really strong and had another shutout and offensively, I think we collected over 20 shots - it's promising and exciting."
The first half was played in a steady downfall of rain and made for some tougher playing conditions overall. That did not affect the UWM offense early, with Boyd netting his third of the season at the 5:01 mark. He found the back of the net from close range, chipping it over the goalkeeper after a combination of passes from Bell and junior Luke Goodnetter.
Milwaukee put together some quality chances before halftime, but could not extend the lead. Sophomore Declan Rodriguez picked up possession after forcing a turnover and found classmate Aaron Horvat in the box, but his shot was saved with a diving attempt.
It stayed that way until after intermission. Once the rains went away, the Panther offense went into full gear, recording 12 of the 17 shots in the second half.
"We are getting a lot of shots each game and that is a good thing," Kelderman said. "We are getting a lot of opportunities, three goals tonight, that was great. It's great to have the record that we do have, but we viewed it as the non-conference play up to this point was our preparation for conference play. At the end of the day, our ultimate goal is to win the conference and see if we can get into the NCAA Tournament."
Anderson made one of his three saves in the 59th minute and sent out a long kick down the field. It landed past the backline of WSU defenders and Younes finished nicely for his third of the year to give Anderson the assist.
Boyd almost had a pair of scores, but his diving header off a serve from Younes went just wide in the 63rd minute.
About five minutes later, Bell volleyed a cross from Younes to the near post. A diving save was made, but freshman Kostas Kotselas picked up the loose ball and found Boyd, who served it back to the near post where Bell beat the WSU keeper to score his seventh goal of the season at the 67:22 mark.
For the match, UWM posted 22-to-12 advantages in shots and 10-to-3 in shots on goal. It had five of the 11 corner kicks and 16 of the 31 fouls. The game also had two yellow cards handed out both ways.
Up next is another big match for the Panthers, as they put their 10-game unbeaten start to the test against Green Bay in a match for the Chancellor's Cup. Game time Tuesday is set for 7 p.m. at Engelmann Stadium, in a game that will be televised live by Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.
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