EDWARDSVILLE – SIUE men's soccer remained unbeaten on the season and unscored upon at home, using a late goal to take down No. 24 Grand Canyon 1-0 Sunday night at Korte Stadium.
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The Cougars are now 4-0-1 overall and 4-0 at home, where SIUE has outscored its opponents 6-0.
"What a weekend with two good teams," SIUE Head Coach Mario Sanchez said. "Grand Canyon is going to do well this year. They have good balance and a lot of speed."
The Lopes began the year 2-0 but dropped both games on the road this weekend.
"What a game tonight," Sanchez continued. "I am really proud of our guys. The first half we were fantastic. We created a lot of good chances. The second half Grand Canyon came out really strong. At the same time our guys weathered the storm. We continue to finish strong. I talk it all the time about the character of this team."
Jorge Gonzalez netted the game-winner for the Cougars in the 84th minute. Lachlan McLean played Gonzalez in with a long through pass from midfield. Gonzalez then beat GCU goalkeeper George Tasouris with his team-leading fourth goal of the year. McLean's assist gave him a team-best three for the season.
"You get good players around each other and they feed off each other," Sanchez said. "We're starting to see that. They're talented, they're good and they're humble kids. It's nice to sit back and watch them play."
Grand Canyon outshot the Cougars 13-10, but SIUE's defense remained unblemished at home, posting its fourth shutout in a row. Goalkeeper Noah Heim made three saves for his fourth clean sheet of the year.
"Sometimes the guys who score the goals get all the credit," Sanchez said. "(You can't forget) What Noah Heim did late. He made some really good saves. He's commanding his box."
Sanchez also praised defenders Johan DePicker, Jack Edwards, Donel Cavillo and Noah Fetter.
"They're all working hard and they're buying in," he said. "We talk all the time about developing good habits. It's a process. The guys are starting to see the more you believe in the process of doing things right the more good things happen."
The Cougars will wrap up their season-long five-game home stand Saturday when Loyola comes to town for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Saturday: SIUE shuts out Wisconsin 3-0
EDWARDSVILLE – Three different players found the back of the net Friday as SIUE men's soccer shut out Wisconsin 3-0 at Korte Stadium.
The win is the third in a row for the Cougars who improved to 3-0-1. Wisconsin dropped to 2-3 following the setback.
Kickoff came 15 minutes late because of lightning in the area, which also forced another delay before the start of the second half.
"The response from the guys after a little bit of a delay was really positive against a dangerous team," SIUE Head Coach Mario Sanchez said. "The response in the second half was tremendous."
After a scoreless first half which saw the Cougars get outshot 5-1 by the Badgers, SIUE outshot Wisconsin 9-3 in the second half en route to three goals.
"What I liked most was the composure that we showed," Sanchez said. "In a tough game you can get emotional and the guys showed their maturity tonight."
Keegan McHugh put the Cougars on top with a free kick in the 66th minute. He rifled a shot under the crossbar from 30 yards out.
"I have to give (Assistant Coach) Simon Bird credit," Sanchez said. "He's taken over our set pieces. He's taken a lot of pride in it and that's come through the players. Now they're looking to score goals."
Lachlan McLean made it 2-0 in the 80th minute. McLean played Kelby Phillips into the 18 yard box. Phillips then played the ball back to McLean who buried from the top of the box.
Jorge Gonzalez capped the scoring with his team-leading third goal of the year with just 47 seconds to play. Cougar goalkeeper Noah Heim delivered a long outlet off a goal kick. McLean got a head to it before Gonzalez carried it into the box and score from 12 yards out.
"To have different guys score goals is great," Sanchez said. "It keeps everyone hungry. We're not just relying on one guy. We have different pieces who can do it."
Heim picked up his third consecutive shutout and was forced to make two strong saves in the final minutes of the game. Heim lowered his goals against average to 0.47 in the win.
"He was great," Sanchez said of his goalkeeper. "He made a couple of point-blank saves. He is growing in confidence. He and (goalkeeper coach) Jeremy (Proud) are working well together. It breeds confidence within the team. The defenders have a little bit more confidence to be aggressive. Our team is more aggressive and a lot of it is because of Noah."
Wisconsin goalkeeper Drew Cowdroy made three saves for Badgers. Isaac Schlenker led the way for Wisconsin with three shots.
SIUE continues its home stand with a Sunday night contest against No. 24 Grand Canyon.
"They're athletic and they can fly," Sanchez said of the Lopes. "We're excited. It's about bringing top teams here to SIUE for the community and for our program. We're looking forward to another challenge."
