EVANSVILLE - Following five non-conference matches to open the season, the University of Evansville men's soccer team opens Missouri Valley Conference action on Saturday evening against Loyola Chicago at Arad McCutchan Stadium in Evansville.
 

Evansville vs. Loyola Chicago | Sat., Sept. 18 | 5 PM
Date | Time	Sat., Sept. 18 | 5 PM
Location	Evansville, Ind.
Site	Arad McCutchan Stadium
Sat., Sept. 18	Evansville vs. Loyola Chicago
Follow Along	Live Stats | ESPN+
Evansville	Men's Soccer Site | Twitter | Game Notes

 
Last Match: Air Force 5, Evansville 1

• In its finale of its Colorado road trip, the University of Evansville men's soccer team scored first, but fell to Air Force, 5-1, on Sunday afternoon in USAF Academy, Colorado.
• "We all have to take a good look at each other and in the mirror and ask some really tough questions as we head into conference play," said Aces head men's soccer coach Marshall Ray. "Our effort on Friday night is what's expected of the Aces. Today we fell short in the second half."
• For the fourth time this season, Evansville scored first, but as has been true this season, despite its fast starts, the second halves have doomed the Aces. Opening his Evansville account, junior Carlos Barcia found the back of the net in the 16th following an assist from Raphaello Perez Colasito. The Aces nearly added to their lead four minutes later as Barcia again put a shot on frame that was saved.
• 10 minutes after Evansville got on the scoreboard, Air Force answered with a goal by Thaddeus Dewing, who followed a saved shot that rebounded out and finished it. In the first half, Evansville and Air Force were nearly even on shots as the Falcons had a 6-5 advantage with the match tied at the break.
• The Aces recorded the first shot of the second half and it came off the foot of Nkosi Graham who missed just wide. In the 59th minute, Air Force went in front, scoring in a goal by Giuliano Daniel, assisted by Remi Smith. Less than one minute later in the 60th minute, the Falcons doubled their lead as Luke Hill scored unassisted.
• Over the final 30 minutes, Air Force scored twice more as the Falcons secured a 5-1 win.

Previewing the Matchup

• Evansville and Loyola Chicago are meeting for the 28th time in series history with Evansville owning a 19-7-1 advantage in the series.
• The two sides last met as the 2020-21 campaign waned with the Ramblers capturing a 3-0 win at home over the Aces.
• Despite trailing in the all-time series, Loyola Chicago has won five-straight matches and has won seven of the last 10 meetings.
• Saturday represents the Aces' MVC opener. Evansville is in search of its first win in its opening conference match since 2016 when UE defeated Bradley on the road, 2-0, on September 17, 2016.
• The reigning MVC Player (Loyola's Billy Hency) and Freshman of the Year (Evansville's Pablo Guillen) will match one another on Saturday, marking the first time the two award winners have faced each other since 2018. In the match in 2018, Central Arkansas' Nikolas Brodacki (PotY) and Bradley's Younes Dayekh (FotY) each started against one another with Brodacki earning the advantage in the matchup with six shots and two goals en route to the Bears' 3-0 win over the Braves on Sept. 22, 2018.

Scoring First

• For the fourth time in five games this season, Evansville found the back of the net first against Air Force on Sunday.
• In all but one match this season, the Aces have accomplished the task of scoring first, with he average time of that first goal coming in the 36th minute.

 

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