Bradley soccer (3-8-3, MVC 1-4-1) was defeated by the Drake Bulldogs on Wednesday, despite beating them two weeks earlier, while also losing a high-powered matchup at Michigan on Friday.
In Des Moines, Iowa, Drake (6-2-3, MVC 4-1) scored early on in the 17th minute from a clever pass that left Bulldogs striker Sam Thornton alone with only Braves junior keeper Nick Burke to beat. Thornton turned and, in a one-touch effort, smashed the ball in the top of the Braves’ net.
Despite not scoring, Bradley soccer head coach Jim DeRose saw a silver lining in the second half.
“We probably played our best half of the season,” DeRose said. “I thought we did a good job on the ball; unfortunately, we didn’t finish our chances.”
Drake doubled their advantage just as everybody was packing things up after an individual effort by A.J. Franklin ended up in the back of the net, securing the Bulldogs’ win.
“We never really came back from that early goal,” DeRose said. “Both of their goals were scored by really good players.”
Before playing Drake, Bradley went toe-to-toe against the University of Michigan (4-7-3, Big 10 1-4-1) at U-M Soccer Stadium in Ann Arbor. Bradley was able to hold off the Wolverines for most of the first half, only conceding in the 44th minute. The Bradley defense held on tight as they were outshot 14-3, with the Braves’ keeper Burke interfering five times.
Michigan doubled their advantage a minute into the second half and scored their final goal via penalty kick.
“Those are always weird games, non-conference games with big conference games coming up,” DeRose said. “We saw different line-ups with different people in different places for both teams.”
The second of four matches without a win for the Braves took place on Oct. 11 against Eastern Illinois (1-8-3, Summit 0-4-1). It was an even matchup as both the Braves and the Panthers had 13 shots on the night, with the Braves being the more clinical of the two teams.
The Panthers’ first goal came in the second half after an initial counterattack and a defense-splitting pass left junior Sam Eccles with only Burke to beat. Three minutes later, Bradley equalized from some smart passes which started with sophomore Jackson Fyda and senior Pepe Mellado and ended with freshman Gonzalo Gil putting the ball away in the back of the net.
“He’s a really gifted player that has had an unfortunate spell of injuries,” DeRose said about Gil. “He gives us a much-needed ability to hold the ball and give us some time to get forward. He was also a handful against Drake.”
Bradley has gone four matches in a row without a win, a trend they’ll be looking to end this Sunday. The Braves will be back home at Shea Stadium against Illinois-Chicago in a rematch for the Braves, who lost their last encounter against the Flames 3-0 in Chicago.
