In Short…

Sophomore Fabian Lifka found the back of the net in the 69^th minute this evening to give the Loyola University Chicago men’s soccer team a well-deserved 1-0 win over Northern Kentucky at Loyola Soccer Park.  With the win, the Ramblers move to 2-0-0 on the young season, while the Norse drop to 0-2-1.

 

Coach Jones’ Thoughts…

“It’s always good to get a win.  We controlled possession and had our chances.  Credit to Northern Kentucky as well.  They fought and battled the entire game, right up until the very end, and really made us earn that victory.”

 

How It Happened

Following an early misfire by Northern Kentucky’s Bastian Beckers in the third minute, Loyola grabbed control of the game.  A corner kick from redshirt senior Ryan Howe, Loyola’s fifth in just over a nine-minute span, connected with senior Matthieu Braem, who headed just wide of the near post in the 15^th minute.

 

Howe found himself in the mix again in the 32^nd minute as he came painfully close to tucking a cross from freshman Marius Kullmann under the crossbar from the edge of the six-yard box.  Senior Kirill Likhovid came even closer 90 seconds after when his headed attempt rung off the bar.  Loyola looked to be headed into halftime with the lead when a low service from Howe found the feet of junior Brody Kraussel, only for a Northern Kentucky defender to clear the Milwaukee, Wis. product’s shot off the line just before time expired.

 

Loyola kept its foot on the gas coming out of the intermission as it searched for a breakthrough tally.  Free kicks in short order from Howe and junior Kyle Thomson each were off the mark before a headed effort from sophomore Alec Lasinski forced the first save of the night out of Christian Carey, the Norse netminder, in the 54^th minute.  Carey came up with his second stop just over six minutes later, tipping a Howe attempt from 25 yards out over the bar.

 

With time beginning to tick away as Loyola dominated possession, the Ramblers were rewarded in the 69^th minute.  Freshman Aidan Megally linked up with Lifka in the box and the Kelkheim, Germany finished the job, tucking his attempt inside the far post to put Loyola in front, 1-0.  Loyola’s defense closed the show from that point on as it did not allow the Norse another shot en route to collecting its first shutout of the season.

 

Looking At The Numbers

- Tonight marked Loyola’s first win over Northern Kentucky in men’s soccer and extended the Maroon & Gold’s home unbeaten run to 21 games.

- The Ramblers finished the night with a dominant statistical edge in nearly every category, highlighted by a staggering 27-1 lead in shots and a 13-3 margin in corner kicks.

- Lifka game-winner in the 69^th minute opened his account for the season following a freshman campaign that saw him net a team-high three goals.

- Redshirt junior goalkeeper Andrew Chekadanov had a relatively quiet night in goal thanks to the strong work of Loyola’s backline to tally the first clean sheet of his collegiate career.

 

Up Next

Loyola looks for a weekend sweep when it hosts Albany on Sunday afternoon. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at Loyola Soccer Park.

 

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