Bradley Beats Mercer, Wins E'ville Tourney

September 21, 2014

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Bradley earned its second straight win and put itself in position to win the Evansville Aces ProRehab Classic by holding off Mercer, 2-1, Sunday at McCutchan Stadium.

After an uneventful first half that saw the two teams combine for just five total shots, Bradley (3-4-0) wasted little time getting the offense going in the second half. Sophomore forward Christian Okeke netted the game's first goal just 38 seconds into the second half for his second tally in as many games.

Senior forward Cody Lofgren scored what would prove to be the game-winning goal in the 64th minute when he finished off a feed from Grant Bell for his second goal of the season and a 2-0 Bradley lead.

Turning up the pressure in an attempt to rally, Mercer (4-4-0) outshot Bradley, x-x, in the second half and the added pressure paid off in the 82nd minute when Jordan Duru pulled the Bears to within 2-1.

While Bradley's two goals were scored on its only two shots on goal for the game, the Bears put seven of their 12 attempts on target. Making his third straight start, third-year sophomore goalkeeper Logan Ketterer made six saves to earn the win. Ketterer now boasts a 0.64 goals against average in his first three career starts.

In Sunday's tournament finale, Marshall snapped a 17-game (0-10-7) winless streak with a 1-0 win against host Evansville, a result that left Bradley the tourney's only undefeated team and, thus, the 2014 Aces ProRehab Classic champion.

Bradley will take its new-found momentum into its Missouri Valley Conference opener when the Braves return to action Saturday (7 p.m.) at Loyola Chicago. The Braves will conclude their 6-game road swing Oct. 4 at SIU Edwardsville, before returning home to face a nationally-ranked Denver squad Oct. 6 at Shea Stadium.

2014 Evansville Aces ProRehab Aces Classic

Tournament Summary

Friday, Sept. 19

Bradley 4, Marshall 0

Evansville 3, Mercer 1

Sunday, Sept. 21

Bradley 2, Mercer 1

Marshall 1, Evansville 0

Tournament Standings

1) Bradley, 2-0-0

2) Marshall, 1-1-0 (head-to-head winner vs. Evansville)

3) Evansville, 1-1-0