Tensions rose on the pitch and near the sidelines as Bradley held on to a 1-1 draw against Illinois-Chicago.
After dropping their previous match to Bowling Green, the Flames looked to steer away from their rocky past couple of games. A resurrected Braves side looked to keep their momentum going after taking a close 2-1 match against Drake.
Right foot forward
Despite breaking their eight game winless streak against the Bulldogs, there were still some questions about how Bradley would play at home. Previously, the Braves have struggled at home, taking no wins at Shea Stadium this season.
As each team entered with different motivations, Bradley had the first few chances of the game early in the first half.
“That’s one of the things we talked about is that we were going to have to press and pressure almost the entire game,” Bradley head coach Jim DeRose said.
After some good developing play from the Braves, freshman DJ Koulai took a left-footed shot near the edge of the 18-yard box that went wide 10 minutes into the match.
A clear look of frustration radiated off the young forward’s face, showing that he knew he missed the Braves first real opportunity.
The frustration seized for the Braves as a great individual run from redshirt sophomore Camden Kowalski tore open the Flames backline, leaving junior Claudel Ngongang open to deposit Bradley’s opening goal.
After missing a month of action, the Quebec international gave the Braves their reward for the constant energy they had displayed up to that point.
“Getting those quality players on the field allows some of the other players to play in more of their natural positions,” DeRose said. “Last game we got [fifth-year senior] Pepe Mellado back and today we got Claudel [Ngongang] back so that helps. Claudel scored a goal, Pepe scored one last game.”
The Bradley goal was a major setback for the Flames as they struggled to find their way into this game. Choosing to attack more directly hurt UIC as they ran into roadblocks every time they went up the field.
“I felt there was great energy and the work rate was second to none,” junior Charlie Dickerson said. “There was plenty of communication between our back four, back five and our goalkeeper.”
The Flames finally found some luck with 18 minutes left in the half as defender Jesus DeVicente snagged his third goal of the season after his shot deflected off a Brave and over sophomore keeper Drew Berry. Deflected goals hurt the Braves earlier in the season as Berry was the victim of two late deflected goals against Bowling Green.
Despite surrendering the lead, Bradley remained persistent in their efforts to get their second goal of the match.
Almost reclaiming the lead for the Braves was Kowalski, who recovered the ball in the midfield and ran through the Flames backline once again. This time, with only the keeper to beat, Kowalski took a shot that ricocheted off the crossbar and out of harm’s way for UIC.
With the match level, a midfield battle ensued in the second half.
Stuck in a stalemate
Much like the first half, the second half brought more individual battles into the midfield than goals in the final third. Both defenses made it difficult for the opposing offenses to power through as each team registered four shots in the second half.
The Flames had a good chance to take the lead five minutes into the second half as Sidney Warden found a deflected ball in the middle of the box. Berry did what he could to position himself and dove to his bottom left corner, where he met the ball that was shot by the Flames defender.
After the close call and still no shots in the second half, Bradley had a chance of their own as freshman Mitch Coughlon tested the Flames keeper from a distance. Despite the low production, the Braves’ defense stood strong.
“We put forward one of our best defending efforts of the year,” DeRose said. “We went a little deeper into our bench today, it kept us fresh and I think it let us keep our pressure.”
With so few shots in the second half for both teams, the match reached its boiling point. With the game still knotted at one all and five minutes to go, a shoving match ensued as a Brave was pushed to the ground after an unsuccessful UIC attack.
“It’s the emotion of an MVC game, we all know each other as coaches, the players are trying hard,” DeRose said. “Fortunately, the kids did a good job to control those moments here and there.”
As words were exchanged, the final whistle blew. The Braves got a much needed draw and the Flames lamented the fact that they could have left with more.
With three games left in the season, Bradley will have to build upon this recent good form if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
“We know that the talent is in this squad,” Dickerson said. “Now that it’s towards the end of the season and we need the results, we are dealing with the pressure really well.”
Bradley’s next chance to move up in the standings will be on Friday, where they will try to keep up their success away from home against Evansville.
