Aces suffer first loss of the season
 PHOENIX, Ariz – On a night that saw the 22nd ranked University of Evansville men’s soccer team dominate the action for much of the game, a late goal sent the Aces to their first loss of the season, as they fell to Grand Canyon University 1-0, in front of a crowd of more than 3,500 in Phoenix, Arizona Thursday night.
“That was a good college soccer match tonight”, said UE Men’s soccer coach Marshall Ray. “It’s an environment that any kid playing in Division One soccer would want to play in. I felt like we took it to them here tonight. It was two good teams going after it.
After 74 minutes of scoreless soccer, redshirt sophomore Hunter DeWeese (Haubstadt, Ind.) was given a yellow card just outside the Evansville box. Grand Canyon’s Alex Ramirez sent the ensuing free kick in front of the net, setting up Niki Jackson for a header, which beat replacement goalie Frederik Reimer the lone goal of the game. The Antelopes move to 1-and-3 on the season with the win.
The lone tally of the night came after the Aces (4-1) had several scoring opportunities thwarted by either GCU goalkeeper Jeremy Pollard or the crossbar. Still. Ray was pleased with his squad’s effort.
“I think we were unlucky”, said Ray. “The cross bar was not our friend this evening, that’s for sure. I think in the second half we continued to battle and push to get the winner. And when we gave up the goal, the guys responded well and created some more chances. It’s just unfortunate that we couldn’t get one to tie it and get it to overtime.”
As for Reimer, the sophomore from Vester Hassing, Denmark replaced senior Matthew Keller (Carmel, Ind.), who went down with a leg injury in the 35th minute of play. Reimer faced six shots on goal, making 5 saves in his first action of the season. An elbow injury had sidelined him for the Aces’ first four games.
“Keller, I think he pulled something on one of those things”, said Ray. “He said he felt it spas up pretty quick, and that’s the reason he came out. I think Frederik responded well. It would have been nice to get him a few more minutes in training and in other spots, but he came in and made some saves and was commanding in the back, and was able to organize things.”
Despite suffering the first loss of the 2017 campaign, Ray feels positive about the team’s performance and believes it’s a game to grow on.
“We’ll watch some video, get ourselves back to Evansville, and get ready for Butler”, said Ray. “But I think we can walk out of here with our head held high, that we battled and competed with a good college team in front of a great crowd this evening, and look forward to get back on the field and playing in front of our fans, when we come home for Eastern Illinois.”
The Aces are back in action Tuesday, September 12, when they make the trip to Indianapolis to take on Butler.
