Box Score BILLINGS, Mont. – Capitalizing on a pair of late opportunities, the Montana State Univeristy Billings men's soccer team scored twice in the second half to defeat visiting South Dakota School of Mines 2-0 in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup Saturday afternoon at Yellowjacket Field.
Thorge Jess scored his team-leading fourth goal of the season in the 72nd minute, playing a cross from
Kyle Emerick into the box and finishing with a shot to the far post.
David Loeung doubled MSUB's tally less than eight minutes later, knocking in a loose ball after a corner kick was deflected down inside the six-yard box.
"We thoroughly deserved today's win," said MSUB head coach
Alex Balog. "We put South Dakota Mines on their heels right from the start. In terms of pressure and positioning, the guys executed very well. That being said, we really need to learn to finish games quicker and put our chances away earlier."
Before the action started,
Sebastien Easton performed the ceremonial kickoff as MSUB's honorary team member. Sebastien is a 6-year-old with cancer, who has been added to the Yellowjacket squad for the 2014 through a partnership with Team IMPACT. Sebastien took the field with the team to start Saturday's game, and kicked the first ball of the match on the opening whistle.
Overall on the game, MSUB had 21 shots and placed nine on target, while SDSMT had five shots with three on target. Hardrocker goalkeeper Braeden Federle made seven saves on the match, while MSUB's
Tom Lohmann was a perfect 3-for-3 to earn his second shutout of the season.
The 'Jackets pulled their record to .500 with the win, as the team now has a record of 3-3-3 and a 3-1-1 mark in GNAC play.
South Dakota Mines fell to 1-8 on the season, and is still in search of its first conference win with a record of 0-5 in GNAC matches.
The 'Jackets created a scoring chance early on, as
Fernando Perez placed a strong shot on frame in the opening seven minutes. Federle dove to his left to push the threat wide and the score remained 0-0.
MSUB kept the pressure on and kept control of the pace in the first half, winning three corner kicks and taking four shots in the opening 12 minutes.
Sam Butterworth served in a cross off of a corner kick with time winding down in the first, and Jess struck a shot off of the right post of the goal.
Winning a free kick two minutes into the second half, Andreas Skau landed the first shot on target of the game for SDSMT. Lohmann got in front of the sinking ball, corralling it for his first save of the match.
The Yellowjackets kept the pressure on the Hardrockers' back line, sending several crosses dangerously in front of the goalmouth.
Creating another opportunity with 10 minutes gone in the second, SDSMT pushed a pair of close-range shots on target off of a corner kick. Lohmann deflected the first, and the Yellowjackets' back line knocked down the second to prevent a Hardrocker goal.
The SDSMT defense did well to clear an MSUB corner kick, which resulted after Federle made a huge save on a close-range shot by Butterworth.
Colin Ralston served in a cross that went over the head of Federle, but the Hardrockers got between
Julian Toenges and the goal line to prevent another close call.
Lohmann made a clutch reaction kick-save, as Michael McGraw poked a cross from four yards out directly towards the goal midway through the second half.
Moving into the final 20 minutes, MSUB found the breakthrough on Jess's fourth goal of the season. Emerick played the ball through into the box from the right side, and Jess finished a low shot past the keeper inside the far post.
Earning a free kick with 15 minutes to play, the Hardrockers came close to an equalizer as a long cross from Skau took a touch and rolled inches wide of the goal post in the Yellowjackets' box.
With 10 minutes to play, MSUB took advantage of a corner kick to double its lead.
Niklas Schregel's shot off of the cross was stopped by the last SDSMT defender, but Loeung was there for the rebound and he finished the goal to make the score 2-0.
"I'm glad we kept playing our game and didn't start panicking when it stayed 0-0," Balog said. "The boys kept going at it and it paid off in the end. This is our third GNAC win in-a-row and it will allow us to go back to Washington with a lot of confidence."
COMING UP: MSUB will challenge GNAC opponents Seattle Pacific and Saint Martin's on the road next week. The 'Jackets and Falcons are scheduled for a 4:30 Pacific time start on Oct. 9, with a 1 p.m. Pacific time kickoff against the Saints on Oct. 11 to follow.
