VALPARAISO, Ind. - Junior Luke Goodnetter netted the game-winning goal and freshman Liam Anderson recorded another shutout to send the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Valparaiso University Saturday night at Brown Field.

The 24th-ranked Panthers (10-1-1, 3-1-0 Horizon League) scored early against the Crusaders (3-4-5, 0-3-1 Horizon League) and picked up their sixth shutout of the season to claim the important conference victory on the road.

Goodnetter's goal was as good as they come, volleying in a blast from over 30 yards away at the 14:31 mark for his first of the season.

Junior Rami Younes had the ball on the end line and chipped a shot in front of goal. It was headed out to Goodnetter, who blasted it with his left foot to the upper corner of the goal for the 1-0 lead.

"It was a great goal by Luke. I don't know if you will see a nicer goal than that, so hat's off to Luke," UWM head coach Kris Kelderman said. "Valpo is a difficult team to play, home or away. They are a team that works very hard and is physical. We knew that it was going to be a tough game tonight. I think the first 15 or 20 minutes of the game showed that. I think they had the better of it early, but as the game wore on, we had more control of the ball and created some good chances again."

UWM had numerous chances to add a second goal but could never find the back of the net. Senior James Ashcroft had a pair of opportunities in the final minute, but some impressive defense stopped both. They both came after Valpo sent their goalie forward and had an open net. Ashcroft gained possession and sent a ball towards the net, but a Crusader defender sprinted over 40 yards to stop it just before it crossed the end line. Seconds later, Ashcroft had another crack at it, but the retreating goalkeeper got a hand on it to punch it way.

"We got better offensively and defensively as the game went on and that is good balance," Kelderman said. "We had 11 shots in the second half, but at the same time, we were very good defending everything in our front of our goal and that is a good sign. We failed to get that second goal, but the defense hung in there very well. I am very pleased with the effort and result tonight - the guys did a great job."

Milwaukee had a pair of chances in the 85th minute. Senior Robbie Boyd hustled past a backline defender to create the opportunity, but his close-range effort was blocked right in front of the goal. The ball caromed to junior Laurie Bell, but his volley was headed by a backline defender over the crossbar for a corner kick.

Boyd also picked up a header from Ashcroft on the back line, spun the defender around and sent a blast to far post just wide in 77th minute.

Valparaiso ended the first half with a 9-to-3 advantage in shots, but only had a pair that made it all the way to the goalkeeper. Anderson made a nice diving save on a shot from distance in the eighth minute, popping up quickly to corral the deflection in front of an open net. His only other save came on an easy stop off a free kick right at him in the 36th minute.

Milwaukee was credited with just three shots prior to intermission, but nearly had a pair of goals. In addition to Goodnetter's strike, Boyd nearly had goal in the 18th minute. After picking up a long ball and making several moves past the backline defense, his attempt from the top of the 18 was stopped with a diving attempt by the Valpo keeper.

UWM ended with a 14-to-11 advantage in shots, with Valpo earning eight of the 12 corner kicks and 12 of the 25 fouls. Bell had his goal-scoring streak snapped at five games, the longest streak by a Panther since 2004.

The Panthers will play just one game next week, but it will be a tough one as they head to Chicago to take on UIC Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Flames are 9-3-0 on the year - 2-0 in league play - and have been ranked in the regional poll most of the season.

---

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU

Men's NCAA Tournament First Round Recap

Women's NCAA Tournament Second Round Recap

Vanderbilt Shocks No. 1 Florida State