Bradley soccer (1-2-1) continued their early season battles this past week, tying 2-2 against defending Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois on Tuesday at Shea Stadium and falling 1-0 to Green Bay on the road on Sunday.
Unlike their last two games, the match against NIU started off quickly, as both teams scored early in the contest. Huskies forward Taisei Arima gave the visiting team a temporary advantage with a goal in the eighth minute.
The joy did not last long for the Huskies, as the Braves tied the game only 52 seconds later when sophomore forward Francesco Pettinaroli knocked a loose ball into the net from 10 yards out after a failed clearance attempt by NIU’s goalkeeper Nolan Cosgrove. Pettinarolli almost scored again in the 11th minute when he had a great chance cleared off the line by Cosgrove.
The Braves took the lead in the 35th minute after an acrobatic goal by Alex Olson. The sophomore scored the first goal of his college career off a half-volley kick following a rebound from Pettinaroli’s header.
Alex Olson with the highlight goal for his career tally and the 2-1 Bradley lead! pic.twitter.com/yiWLFZu1Tf
— Bradley Soccer (@BradleySoccer) September 2, 2022
Bradley head coach Jim DeRose admired the team’s ability to bounce back from NIU’s initial score and shared his thoughts about Olson’s goal.
“It was a great goal, [a] phenomenal goal,” DeRose said. “He’s got good size and he’s very good in and around the penalty area. He gets the balls because he’s got a good goal-scoring mentality; credit to him to try and pull that off in that space.”
Just four minutes into the second half, the Huskies found the leveler as Patrick Coleman guided the ball past Braves keeper Nick Burke to even the game at two. NIU dominated most of the second half and outshot Bradley 19-5 during the 90 minutes of action but could not capitalize to win the game. Burke had multiple saves during the last 10 minutes of the game to settle for a draw.
Pettinaroli thinks the team had a good game against a tough rival, but believes the squad will be capable of much more once a few of the Braves’ injured players are back.
“We gotta keep pushing and try every time to do better,” Pettinaroli said. “I can’t wait to start the conference games. I think we can do so much better than last year.”
In their second match of the week, Bradley fell 1-0 to Green Bay at Aldo Santaga Stadium in Wisconsin. During the first half, both teams remained scoreless despite Green Bay outshooting Bradley 6-2.
Neither team broke through until a penalty was drawn by Christoph Schurz of the Phoenix. Forward Chris Album converted the penalty shot, despite a deflection from Burke, and gave the hosts the lead.
The Braves did not go down without a fight and had a chance to tie it up in the 76th minute with a header off of a corner kick. They were unable to find the equalizer, even after matching a season-high with five shots on goal.
Despite the loss, DeRose thought the team played well and knows that it will only be a matter of time until the Braves get their first road win of the season. The squad has opportunities to do so with three of their next four contests away from Shea Stadium.
“You have got to try to get points on the road,” DeRose said. “The guys responded to playing at Shea Stadium, now we have got to figure out a way to get points on the road.”
The Braves look to return to the win column tonight as they visit Omaha, whom they beat 1-0 last year, at Caniglia Field in Nebraska.
