The Purple Aces opened Missouri Valley Conference play on Saturday night
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – After a week away, the University of Evansville men’s soccer team fell 2-1 to the Drake Bulldogs at home in the MVC opener.
The Purple Aces’ offense struggled in their first conference game of 2024 back at Arad McCutchan Stadium. UE had a season-low six shots against Drake in the 2-1 loss with only a single shot registered in the first 45 minutes of action. But graduate forward Sami Owusu (Denver, Colo. / Dayton) began a goal-scoring streak in the 89th minute with his third score of the year.
Evansville played mostly on defense for the first 45 minutes of Saturday’s match. The Aces ground around the Bulldog’s offense, only occasionally getting away into the attacking third. Drake took advantage in the 29th minute off a corner kick, heading the ball past freshman goalkeeper Michal Mroz (Elk Grove, Ill. / Elk Grove HS) for the lead. UE’s only offensive strike in the first half came two minutes later from senior midfielder Jose Vivas (Teruel, Spain) whose shot from the top of the penalty box was saved by Bulldogs goalkeeper Tomas Butkovic.
The pace picked up slightly for Evansville in the second half with two early corner kicks. But the Aces offense truly came alive in the final 20 minutes of the match. Sophomore midfielder Baraka Tarleton (Andover, Minn. / Andover HS) came inches shy of a goal in the 69th minute as his header crossed half of the goal line before being saved by Butkovic. UE almost nearly had a goal in the 86th minute as well but were called offside just as the ball went into the back of the net.
While it seemed like Evansville was about to break through on offense, Drake midfielder Damien Segura had a long shot with just enough spin on it to give the Bulldogs a late 2-0 lead. The Aces would not be shut out in their first game of MVC action, scoring in the final minute. Owusu slid down to connect with the ball off his right foot to score his second goal in as many games after the ball was headed to him by senior forward Nacho Diaz Barragan (Almeria, Spain). UE didn’t find the equalizer in the final 45 seconds to fall to the Drake Bulldogs 2-1.
Evansville hits the road for its next match heading up I-69 to Indiana for a midweek match against the Hoosiers. Kick-off on Tuesday, September 17th is set for 6:30 p.m. CT from Bill Armstrong Stadium. Tuesday’s match will be streamed on B1G+ and requires a subscription.
