A stretch of five consecutive road fixtures for the Valparaiso University men’s soccer team began on Saturday night with a 3-0 setback to SIUE in Edwardsville, Ill. Jorn-Jan van de Beld (Balkrug, The Netherlands / University of Twente) received the start at the goalkeeper spot and notched six saves. Valpo played well in spurts and controlled considerable possession on a night where the final score was not fully indicative of what transpired.

How It Happened

• SIUE scored its first goal of the evening in the 12^th minute off a rebound of a Jorge Gonzalez shot. After the initial save by van de Beld, Lachlan McLean found the back of the net to make it 1-0.
• McLean made it a brace in the blink of an eye, scoring again less than 90 seconds after his first goal of the evening. Both goals were assisted by Gonzalez.
• Joe Kouadio (London, England / Moorland School) and Ryan Madondo (Franklin, Tenn. / Franklin Road Academy [East Tennessee State]) placed shots on goal in the 15^th and 16^th minutes, but Cougars goalkeeper Lluis Martorell came up with saves in both instances.
• Van de Beld had three saves in the first 15 minutes of the second half, then Jonas Engler put one on frame in the 66^th only to see Martorell pick up the save.
• The lone tally of the second half came by Jacob Bilyeu with Mathias Krigbaum assisting in the 69^th minute. That SIUE goal, which was set up by a set piece, accounted for the final margin.

Inside the Game

• The shot count was tight with SIUE owning a 12-9 edge. Valpo placed four of its nine shots on frame. The shots were spread out among eight players with Kouadio the only player who struck a pair.
• Van de Beld made his third appearance and second start of the season. Prior to Saturday, he hadn’t played since Sept. 13 at SMU. The transfer goalkeeper has made six saves in each of his last two outings.
• The Cougars (6-3-1) forced Valpo to continue its challenging slate that has featured mostly winning sides. None of the team’s six road matches have come against a team that entered the match with a losing record.

Thoughts from Head Coach Mike Avery

“It was a bit of a funny game for us tonight because there were very long stretches where we played quite well. We possessed and were able to move the ball against a very well organized SIUE team, but the score line looks lopsided. The stats show we had more of the possession and were in their half more than they were in ours, but the game is won and lost in the penalty boxes. We have not been good enough defending our goal or attacking their goal yet this year.”

“It’s a process with an inexperienced team that can sometimes be a long and painful process, but we simply have to clean up individually in the critical moments.”

“We had two individual errors in the first 15 minutes, they capitalized and the whole complexion of the game changed. Even going into halftime, we felt we could climb back into the game, but we knew it would be a fight for the game’s third goal. They got their goal off a set piece and it was game over at that point.”

“I’m still convinced it will come for this group and the attitude of the team hasn’t shown any signs of falling off track. They’re frustrated, and they should be, but as long as they channel that in the right way, things will turn in their favor.”

“There were some bright spots: Joe Kouadio was terrific. Lucas Oliveira and Mason Marcey were very good. Michael Cushing brought tremendous energy. Adan Garcia and Demar Rose were good. These are all things we can build on, and we will spend every minute this week available preparing for Loyola first and then the second half of league play.”                   

Up Next

Valpo (2-7-1) will return to Missouri Valley Conference action on Saturday, Oct. 12 for a 7 p.m. kickoff against Loyola in Rogers Park. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3.