Oct. 26, 2011
PEORIA, Ill. -- The Missouri State men’s soccer team (6-7-2, 3-1-0 Missouri Valley Conference) lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to Bradley (10-4-2, 2-2-0 MVC) at Shea Stadium on Wednesday due to a foul early in the second half. Missouri State suffered its first loss in league, while Bradley snapped its six-match winless streak against the Bears.
Throughout the first half, the theme was missed scoring opportunities by a Bradley squad that was ranked 39th in the latest NSCAA Coaches’ Poll. The Braves took six first-half corner kicks in addition to some long throw ins deep into the Missouri State territory, but the Bears held firm and kept the match at a stalemate heading into halftime.
In the first half, Bradley outshot Missouri State, 10-4, and didn’t allow the Bears a shot on goal, while redshirt-sophomore goalkeeper Trevor Spangenberg logged two saves in the first period.
Bradley made its move right out of the gate in the 47th minute when forward Bryan Gaul created a 1-on-1 opportunity with Spangenberg as his only obstacle. Attempting to snatch up the ball, Spangenberg took out the senior forward and the officials issued the yellow card and penalty kick to the Braves. Gaul made it a 1-0 game, finishing off the penalty with a low shot to the corner of the net just outside of Spangenberg’s reach.
Missouri State launched shot after shot at BU goalkeeper Brian Billings, but couldn’t capitalize on any of its scoring opportunities late in the second half. The Bears recorded half of their shots (5) on the night in the final 10 minutes with two shots on target.
The Braves outshot Missouri State 18-10 and took nine corner kicks compared to the Bears’ five. Individually, Parker Maher, Heath Melugin and David Buckenheimer tied for a team-high two shots.
Missouri State will look to bounce back with a win at Plaster Field in its final home game of the season and Senior Night on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 6 p.m. Sunday will also mark the third annual “Living Our Legacy” game. For more information on the Legacy game, click here.
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