Sunday, September 28, 2003

Matt Nickell's rebound goal nearly four minutes into the second overtime lifted Drake to a 1-0 victory over Valparaiso on Sunday afternoon in Des Moines, Iowa.

Both teams played 90 scoreless minutes of soccer in regulation time with Drake holding a 16-9 advantage on shots after outshooting the Crusaders 10-3 in the opening stanza. In the first overtime, the Bulldogs outshot Valpo 3-2 and each team had a shot attempt in overtime as Drake outshot Valpo 20-12 for the match.

The Bulldogs played a man down the final 2:09 of regulation and both overtime periods as Chris Hamburger was sent off with a red card as a result of two yellows but the Brown and Gold could not take advantage and Nickell scored at the 103:56 mark of the match.

Jeff Oleck (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral H.S.) made nine saves for Valpo while Zack Brennan made six stops for Drake (6-2-1).

Valparaiso (0-6-2) will return home on Friday to open Mid-Continent Conference action looking for their first victory of the season when the Crusaders entertain UMKC. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.