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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville men's soccer team opened its 2014 preseason with an impressive 2-0 victory over visiting Bellarmine Monday afternoon at Arad McCutchan Stadium.  The Purple Aces got goals from junior Mark Anthony Gonzalez and freshman Ian McGrath, and outshot the Knights, 21-6.
 
Evansville controlled the possession for much of the match, especially in the opening half, as the Aces posted a 12-2 shot margin in the opening 45 minutes.  UE created several scoring opportunities 20 minutes, before Gonzalez broke through with a goal in the 37th minute.
 
Gonzalez created the opportunity by dispossessing a Bellarmine defender deep inside the Knights' defensive third, before finishing the one-on-one chance with BU goalkeeper Blake Hunter to give Evansville at 1-0 advantage.
 
Junior Nate Opperman nearly doubled the Aces' advantage in the final minute of the first half, as he rifled a shot in from outside the right corner of the 18-yard box, but was denied by the crossbar.
 
Bellarmine was able to mount more of an attack in the second half, as the Knights recorded four of their six shots in the closing stanza, but the UE defense stood firm, denying BU a shot on goal.
 
McGrath attempted one of Evansville's nine second-half shots in the 80th minute, when he collected a loose ball at the top of the box and sent it into the upper, right corner of the goal to make the final score, 2-0.
 
A trio of Aces' goalkeepers combined for the shutout, as senior Eric Teppen played the opening 30 minutes in goal and collected UE's lone save.  Freshman Matthew Keller saw 29 minutes of action, while classmate Myles Fullen saw action between the posts over the final 31 minutes.
 
Offensively, senior Charlie Macias led Evansville with four shots, including one shot on goal and another that rang the crossbar in the second half.  Opperman and junior Faik Hajderovic each added three shots to aid the offensive effort.
 
For Bellarmine, Joe Workman led the Knights with a pair of shots and Dan Schiavi accounted for BU's only shot on goal.  Blake Hunter made five saves for Bellarmine in the opening half and Tommy Hebert tallied three over the final 45 minutes.
 
The Aces will be back in action Friday afternoon at 3 p.m., when they host Cincinnati for their second of three exhibition matches.  The contest will be part of a Friday twin bill at McCutchan Stadium, as the UE women's team will open its 2014 campaign against Austin Peay at 7 p.m.