UNIVERSITY CENTER -- Hosting the Ashland University Eagles in a rematch of the first round of the 2018 NCAA Division II Tournament, the SVSU Men's Soccer team defeated AU by a 2-1 score on Sunday (Sep. 22) afternoon. SVSU used a second half goal to break a 1-1 tie and came away with the one-goal victory.
The Cards got on the board first, taking a 1-0 lead when Gustavo Bergmann took a feed from Connor Rutz and found the back of the net at the 20:58 mark of the match.
Ashland tied the contest up at 1-1 in the 34th minute of the first half, making good on a penalty kick by Kieran Paterson.
The 1-1 deadlock held true until the 51st minute of the match. That's when Rutz set up another teammate for a score, feeding Brady Walker for a goal and 2-1 Cardinal lead.
Saginaw Valley was able to hold-off a late Ashland charge and secure the victory at 2-1.
Inside the Boxscore
- Bergmann's goal was his second of the season while Walker now has three goals in 2019.
- Walker's three goals lead the team and the GLIAC.
- Rutz's pair of helpers give him three on the year, which leads SVSU and the GLIAC.
- SVSU had a 17-9 edge in shots and 9-3 advantage in corner kicks.
- Mason Maziasz (3-1-1) got the victory in net, making two saves on three shots on goal.
- Ashland's Marshall Ney had six saves, facing eight shots on goal overall.
From Head Coach Louis Barrow
"Always a tough game against Ashland, which is a very well-coached team. They have a great group that all buy into the identity of the team and they commit. At any level, that is difficult to play against. Fortunately, we started off very well and the boys brought great energy and quality to the field. Gustavo got another goal from defense, which is fantastic. Rutz and Bruce continued to control central areas, which was huge today. Overall, the lads all worked very hard to keep the Ashland forwards away from our goal and had great composure and quality when close to their goal."
Up Next...
The Cardinals host Upper Iowa University on Friday (Sep. 27) in another GLIAC match. The Peacocks are coming off a 2-0 loss at Northern Michigan on Sunday afternoon. First kick will be 3:00 p.m. at SVSU's Braddock Field.
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