Saturday, September 16
Indianapolis, Ind.
12:00 PM
Creighton University
3-3, 0-1BIG EAST
2
at
3
Butler
5-2, 1-0BIG EAST
1
2
OT 2
F
Creighton
1
1
0
2
BUTLER
0
2
1
3
Photo by: Steve Branscombe
Men's Soccer Starts BIG EAST Schedule With Overtime Loss Against Butler
9/16/2017 3:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Ricky Lopez-Espin recorded his third career multi-goal match
INDIANAPOLIS --Â The Creighton men's soccer team opened the BIG EAST portion of the 2017 schedule with a 3-2 loss in overtime to Butler on Saturday afternoon at Varsity Field in Indianapolis.
The Bluejays fell to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in league action, while the Bulldogs improved to 5-2 overall and 1-0 in BIG EAST play.
Creighton's Ricky Lopez-Espin scored two goals to give the Jays a 2-0 lead, but host Butler scored three unanswered goals, including a golden goal by Alex Lehtinen during the 93rd minute, and recorded a come-from-behind victory during the first day of BIG EAST play.
Saturday marked Lopez-Espin's thirdcareer multi-goal match. He also had a pair of goals last season during the regular-season finale against Georgetown and during Creighton's second round victory over Drake during the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The Miami, Florida, native, now has three goals this season and 21 during his career as a Bluejay.Â
Creighton jumped out to a 1-0 lead during the fifth minute of action. Lopez-Espin found the back of the net on the Bluejays' first shot attempt of the match. Kuba Polat earned first collegiate assist on the play.
Both sides had multiple opportunities during the first 45 minutes, but Lopez-Espin's goal was the only ball that made it past either goalkeeper. Creighton's Michael Kluver made four first-half saves, while Butler's Eric Dick tallied three as the Bluejays and Bulldogs combined for 14 shots during the opening half.
The Bluejays started fast after the halftime break, firing four corner kicks and three shots during the first 10 minutes of the second half.Â
Lopez-Espin added his second goal of the match during the 65th minute. The senior converted a give-and-go situation with fellow senior Lucas Stauffer to give Creighton a two-goal advantage.Â
Butler closed the deficit to one during the 77th minute. Brandon Guhl tallied his fifth goal of the season to make it 2-1 in favor of Creighton with less than 15 minutes to play.Â
Less than five minutes after his first goal of the match, Guhl found the back of the net to tie the match during the 81st minute. The sophomore received a long ball before chipping it over Kluver for his second goal of the match.
During the 89th minute the Bluejays had one final chance to end the match during regulation. Joel Rydstrand sent a corner kick towards the box and Connor Ramlo headed the ball towards the goal, but Dick made his fifth save of the afternoon to extend the match.Â
Butler ended the match during the first scoring opportunity for either team during the extra time. Lewis Suddick sent a corner kick into the box where Lehtinen headed the ball into the top-right corner of the goal.Â
"For 70 minutes we played really, really well; we just weren't capable of finishing out the game," head coach Elmar Bolowich.
The Bluejays and Bulldogs each recorded 14 shots during the course of 93 minutes. The two squads also combined for a total of 38 fouls and six yellow cards.
"We cannot feel sorry for ourselves for giving up three straight, it's a matter of getting proper rest and being recovered," Bolowich said. "That game was played in hot conditions -- guys are extremely tired at the moment -- so for us it's a matter of how do we get our legs back and play another very good team?"
Creighton returns to action on Tuesday night against No. 20 Tulsa. Kickoff between the Bluejays and Golden Hurricane is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Morrison Stadium.Â
The Bluejays fell to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in league action, while the Bulldogs improved to 5-2 overall and 1-0 in BIG EAST play.
Creighton's Ricky Lopez-Espin scored two goals to give the Jays a 2-0 lead, but host Butler scored three unanswered goals, including a golden goal by Alex Lehtinen during the 93rd minute, and recorded a come-from-behind victory during the first day of BIG EAST play.
Saturday marked Lopez-Espin's thirdcareer multi-goal match. He also had a pair of goals last season during the regular-season finale against Georgetown and during Creighton's second round victory over Drake during the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The Miami, Florida, native, now has three goals this season and 21 during his career as a Bluejay.Â
Creighton jumped out to a 1-0 lead during the fifth minute of action. Lopez-Espin found the back of the net on the Bluejays' first shot attempt of the match. Kuba Polat earned first collegiate assist on the play.
Both sides had multiple opportunities during the first 45 minutes, but Lopez-Espin's goal was the only ball that made it past either goalkeeper. Creighton's Michael Kluver made four first-half saves, while Butler's Eric Dick tallied three as the Bluejays and Bulldogs combined for 14 shots during the opening half.
The Bluejays started fast after the halftime break, firing four corner kicks and three shots during the first 10 minutes of the second half.Â
Lopez-Espin added his second goal of the match during the 65th minute. The senior converted a give-and-go situation with fellow senior Lucas Stauffer to give Creighton a two-goal advantage.Â
Butler closed the deficit to one during the 77th minute. Brandon Guhl tallied his fifth goal of the season to make it 2-1 in favor of Creighton with less than 15 minutes to play.Â
Less than five minutes after his first goal of the match, Guhl found the back of the net to tie the match during the 81st minute. The sophomore received a long ball before chipping it over Kluver for his second goal of the match.
During the 89th minute the Bluejays had one final chance to end the match during regulation. Joel Rydstrand sent a corner kick towards the box and Connor Ramlo headed the ball towards the goal, but Dick made his fifth save of the afternoon to extend the match.Â
Butler ended the match during the first scoring opportunity for either team during the extra time. Lewis Suddick sent a corner kick into the box where Lehtinen headed the ball into the top-right corner of the goal.Â
"For 70 minutes we played really, really well; we just weren't capable of finishing out the game," head coach Elmar Bolowich.
The Bluejays and Bulldogs each recorded 14 shots during the course of 93 minutes. The two squads also combined for a total of 38 fouls and six yellow cards.
"We cannot feel sorry for ourselves for giving up three straight, it's a matter of getting proper rest and being recovered," Bolowich said. "That game was played in hot conditions -- guys are extremely tired at the moment -- so for us it's a matter of how do we get our legs back and play another very good team?"
Creighton returns to action on Tuesday night against No. 20 Tulsa. Kickoff between the Bluejays and Golden Hurricane is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Morrison Stadium.Â
Team Stats
CU
BUTLER
Goals
2
3
Shots
14
14
Shots on Goal
7
9
Saves
6
5
Corners
8
5
Fouls
25
13
Scoring Plays
LOPEZ-ESPIN, Ricky (2)
Assisted By: POLAT, Kuba
off turnover
4:45
LOPEZ-ESPIN, Ricky (3)
Assisted By: STAUFFER, Lucas
give and go, shot from 10 yards out, low
64:36
GUHL, Brandon (5)
Assisted By: HARVEY, Joel
play through, shot from left side
76:31
GUHL, Brandon (6)
Assisted By: GALLIFORD, Isaac
long ball, bounces high and chipped over
80:45
LEHTINEN, Alex (1)
Assisted By: SUDDICK, Lewis
header off corner to top right 90 from 7
92:47
Game Leaders
Shots
3
SOG
3
Goals
2
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
0
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
3
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
GK
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