Creighton University
SIU Edwardsville
No. 9 Men's Soccer Plays to 2-2 Draw With SIUE
10/30/2010 10:58:00 PM | Men's Soccer
OMAHA, Neb. - Ethan Finlay scored just 43 seconds into the match and assisted another first-half goal for the ninth-ranked Creighton men's soccer team Saturday night at Morrison Stadium, but the Bluejays squandered the two-goal lead as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville scored two second-half goals to force overtime. Neither team could find the back of the net in overtime as the match ended in a 2-2 stalemate.
The draw gives the Bluejays an 11-3-1 overall record and moves them to 4-0-1 in Missouri Valley Conference action, while the Cougars move to 9-5-2 overall and 4-1-1 in league play. Both Creighton and SIUE are tied with Missouri State (4-0-1 MVC) atop the MVC standings with 13 points.
"I think today we finally ran out of steam," said head coach Jamie Clark after the tie. "We competed and I'm proud of the effort we gave tonight, but I think for the first time we finally ran out of gas as a result of our schedule. With that said, we are still in a great spot in the conference race, we just would have liked to have won that game."
Finlay's goal 43 seconds into the match wasn't the fastest strike he's had this year, as he scored 41 seconds after kickoff against fifth-ranked Tulsa on Oct. 5. Brent Kallman played a ball deep down the right side, connecting with Dion Acoff who penetrated the Cougar defense and sent a crossing pass all the way across the goal mouth where Finlay volleyed in the shot from close range. The goal was Finlay's league-leading 12th of the season. The assist for Acoff was his league-leading ninth of the year.
Creighton's second goal came on a counter off of an SIUE corner kick. Finlay sprinted up the field with the ball on his feet, taking on four SIUE defenders. Finlay had enough space to feed the ball to Moran who had made a long run to the right of Finlay. Moran took the feed and buried his second goal of the season to give the Jays a 2-0 lead in the 43rd minute.
The Cougars cut Creighton's lead in half just five minutes after halftime. Chris Anzalone scored his first of two goals on the night in the 50th minute, taking a pass from Kevin Bielicki and bending it past Brian Holt in net.
The Bluejays held on to their lead and gained a man advantage after Mike Jones received a red card in the 81st minute for his second yellow.
SIUE scored the equalizer in the 87th minute, when Anzalone found the back of the net with his team-best seventh goal of the season. Brian Groark sent the ball down the middle to Jared Tejada, who crossed it to Anzalone in the middle of the box.
Jace Peters, playing for the first time since Sept. 19, nearly collected the game-winning goal in the second overtime, when his header was saved by Nick Collico in net for SIUE. Finlay also had a shot for the game-winner in overtime, but sent his attempt high.
Creighton put seven of its 14 shots on goal in the match, but Collico made five saves in goal for the Cougars. Holt made one save in net, as SIUE managed only three shots on goal in the contest.
Finlay's three points give him 35 in his Morrison Stadium career, establishing a venue record. His 14 goals at Morrison Stadium tie Andrei Gotsmanov's stadium record. Gotsmanov had the former stadium record with 34 points.
The Bluejays still control their own destiny in the MVC race, as they host Missouri State on Wednesday. The Bears enter the week with the same 4-0-1 MVC record as the Jays. Creighton and Missouri State will kick off at 7 pm Wednesday at Morrison Stadium.
NOTES: The draw was Creighton's first of the season, the Jays had not gone this far into the season without a tie since 2004 ... The Bluejays had not followed a home loss with a home tie since 1981 prior to this draw after their loss to Indiana on Oct. 9 ... Finlay now has 27 points on the season, the most by a Bluejay since Byron Dacy had 27 in 2005 ... Peters played 79 minutes in the match, returning after missing CU's last eight matches with a leg injury ... The Jays played without starting midfielder Greg Jordan, who was serving a red card suspension.
