The Purple Aces picked up their fourth shutout of the season
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – On a night celebrating their 11 senior players the University of Evansville men’s soccer team earned a crucial three points in a 1-0 victory over the Bowling Green State Falcons.
It only took one goal for the Purple Aces to earn a win over Bowling Green on Friday night. Graduate forward Sami Owusu (Denver/ Dayton) capitalized on the Falcons goalkeeper coming out of the box in the 60th minute for UE’s lone goal of the night. Freshman goalkeeper Michal Mroz (Elk Grove, Ill. / Elk Grove HS) was a brick wall in the net with six saves for his fourth clean sheet of 2024.
“That’s a college soccer game right there,” said Head Coach Robbe Tarver following the victory. “Crazy swings from both sides and posts for both teams. PK’s called, PK’s rescinded. We’re really happy to win at home on Senior Night for the 12 seniors.
“The grittiness and guys playing who haven’t played for a minute all year stepping up and ready to defend a one-goal lead and come out victorious. I think that speaks volumes to the guys that we have in this program. And like I’ve told them we’re setting a new standard. This is just another step along the way. And we’re pumped to have 12 points in MVC play.”
It was a defensive first half at Arad McCutchan Stadium as both teams fought for possession in the mid-third. The Aces had the first shot of the match in the third minute as senior midfielder Jose Vivas (Teruel, Spain) took a chance from outside the 18. Bowling Green had the next shot in the 15th minute as neither team put together an offensive run in the half. UE’s best chance in the first 45 came in the 32nd minute as Vivas had the ball by himself right in front of the goal box. But the shot sailed over the net keeping it a scoreless draw heading into halftime.
Evansville came out of the half-break firing on all cylinders as senior forward Nacho Diaz Barragan (Almeria, Spain) put a shot on goal in the first 30 seconds. The Falcons found their way back to the Aces defensive zone, but UE quickly moved back to the attack.
In the 59th minute, Bowling Green tried to play the ball back to their defense but missed its target. Redshirt freshman midfielder Jacopo Fedrizzi (Giulia, Italy) picked up the ball on the mistake, sending it to fifth-year forward Kai Phillip (Diego Martin, Trinidad and Tobago). Phillip quickly found Owusu alone on the right side of the 12, where he buried the ball into the bottom left corner of the net for Evansville’s lone goal.
The Aces defense stood strong the final 30 minutes of the match as the Falcons took eight shots. The match began to get chippy around the 66th minute as both teams picked up two yellow cards in 12 minutes including a penalty opportunity for Bowling Green. In the 80th minute, a UE yellow in the box gave the Falcons a PK. Mroz made the diving save to the bottom left corner of the net to keep Evansville in the lead.
Bowling Green was able to take three more shots in the final five minutes of the match. But the Aces’ defense blocked all three to pick up their eighth win of the season and fourth win of Valley play. Vivas and Phillip led the offense with two shots each while three other players had an opportunity at the net.
UE hits the road for a Top 25 matchup on Friday, November 1st. Evansville will visit Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium for the final time in MVC play to take on the no. 13 Missouri State Bears. Kick-off from Springfield is set for 7 p.m.
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