In Short…

The No. 15/6 Loyola University Chicago men’s soccer team took a giant step towards clinching a Missouri Valley Conference regular season title this evening as it downed visiting Missouri State, 2-0, at Loyola Soccer Park.  With the win, the Ramblers move to 12-1-1 overall (5-0-1 MVC), while the Bears fall to 7-5-2 (3-2-1 MVC).

 

How It Happened

Both goalkeepers were called upon in the early minutes on a cool evening in Rogers Park.  Liam Priestley, the Missouri State netminder, turned away senior Kevin Engesser in the eighth minute.  Redshirt junior Andrew Chekadanov came up with a pivotal stop only 30 seconds later when he denied Emmerich Hoegg in a one-on-one situation.

 

Engesser found himself with another opportunity in the 13^th minute and did not let it go to waste.  The Huntington Beach, Calif. product corralled a pass from sophomore Alec Lasinski and fired in off the far post to put Loyola in front, 1-0.  Missouri State generated a pair of corner kicks shortly after as it looked to amp up its attack but both were cleared away by the Rambler defense.  The Bears struggled to find any rhythm in the offensive third as the half wore on, going without an attempt for the final 22 minutes, as Loyola took a 1-0 lead into the locker room.

 

The Maroon & Gold came out attacking to begin the second stanza.  Junior Elliot Collier headed just high of goal in the 52^nd minute off of a corner kick by redshirt senior Ryan Howe.  Just under three minutes later, freshman Marius Kullmann sent a ball into the box that found freshman Aidan Megally.  The Park Ridge, Ill. native rose up and headed just inside the far post to double the Loyola advantage, 2-0, in the 55^th minute.

 

Lasinski nearly made it 3-0 in the 56^th minute, only to see his headed effort bounce off the crossbar.  Collier came dangerously close to putting his name on the scoresheet seconds later when his blast just missed at the far post.  The extra insurance wouldn’t be needed on the evening though as Loyola held Missouri State without a shot for the entire second half en route to picking up a 2-0 victory.  

 

Looking At The Numbers

- Tonight’s win marked Loyola’s second in as many tries over Missouri State but was its first over the Bears in a regular season matchup.

- The win also sees Loyola extend its home unbeaten run to 26 games.

- Engesser’s tally in the 13^th minute was his first goal of the season and second of his collegiate career.

- Megally continued his strong play of late as he scored for a second consecutive game.

- By virtue of tonight’s results from around the league, Loyola now holds a six-point edge in the Valley table over Missouri State, SIUE and Evansville, who all sit in a three-way tie for second place, with only two conference games remaining on its schedule.

 

Up Next

Loyola closes out non-conference play on Wednesday when it makes the short trip north to Evanston, Ill. for a meeting with the Northwestern Wildcats. Kickoff from Martin Stadium is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

 

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