Just as numerous Saint Louis University alumni returned to SLU
this weekend for the annual Homecoming weekend, the SLU men’s
soccer team returned home after road victories over East Carolina
and DePaul. The Billikens, ranked 5th in the nation by the National
Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), defeated the
University of South Florida Bulls 2-1 in an overtime thriller at
Robert R. Hermann Stadium before a crowd of 5,591.
With the win, the Billikens’ record improved to 4-1-1 in
Conference USA and 9-1-2 overall, while the loss dropped the Bulls’
record to 1-3-1 in Conference USA and 4-5-2 overall.
The Billikens controlled play throughout most of the first half,
as they out-shot the Bulls 12-3. Despite these many chances, they
were unable to put the ball in the net.
SLU had one of its best chances to score in the half when SLU
freshman midfielder Will John found his shot hit the post, then had
his rebound opportunity stopped by a USF defender.
The Billikens had another great opportunity to score when
freshman forward Vedad Ibisevic beat USF goalkeeper Dane Brenner,
only to see his shot hit the left post, just as John had done
earlier in the half.
While the Billikens controlled play in the first half, the Bulls
were the team that entered the locker room at halftime with a 1-0
lead, as USF freshman Keeron Benito gave his team the lead in the
final minute of the half when he scored off a pass from Aaron
Paroulek who set up the play by making a long run and beating SLU’s
defense to the end line, where he moved in on the net before
feeding Benito for the goal. The goal was the first of the season
given up by SLU sophomore goalkeeper Jeff Sackman, who made his
second consecutive start in place of Martin Hutton.
As the second half began, the Billikens continued to dominate
play as they had in the first half. Finally, in the 67th minute
their dominating play was rewarded with a goal as Ibisevic netted
the equalizer on a header off a corner kick by freshman midfielder
John DiRaimondo. The goal was Ibisevic’s team-leading seventh goal
of the season. The rest of the second half was scoreless, so the
game went to overtime.
teams had a good opportunity to end the game. The Bulls had their
chance early when their leading scorer, forward Hunter West, put
his shot over the crossbar. Midway through the overtime period,
Ibisevic received a feed from DiRaimondo in the box, but his shot
went wide of the post to the left.
In the 99th minute Ibisevic passed to John, who was on the right
side of the box and moving in on USF goalkeeper Brenner.
Upon receiving the pass, John dribbled towards the goal, then
proceeded to put the ball past Brenner into the back of the net for
the winner. The goal was his sixth of the season, as well as his
second consecutive game winner and his second golden goal.
“This is the happiest I have been for this team all season,”
coach Dan Donigan said after the game in reference to the
resilience and maturity his team showed.
The crowd of 5,591 was the second largest in the history of
Hermann Stadium.
The Billikens next two games are on the road, as they play C-USA
foe University of Cincinnati in the Queen City on Saturday October
18. They will also travel to Bloomington, Ind. for a tilt with
traditional power Indiana University on Oct. 24 before their next
game at Hermann Stadium on Oct. 29 at 8 p.m. against the University
of Memphis in a C- USA match.
C-USA Road Tilt
Who: Cincinnati Bearcats
When: Saturday, 7 p.m.
Where: Cincinnati, Ohio
