DePaul University
Eastern Illinois
Blue Demons Dominate Everywhere But Final Score
9/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S SOCCER
Sept. 18, 2010
CHICAGO - Craig Blazer walked off Wish Field at Cacciatore Stadium Saturday shaking his head and trying to make sense of what had just transpired.
His DePaul soccer team had seemingly dominated Eastern Illinois---only to come away with a frustrating 2-0 loss.
The Blue Demons launched a season-high 19 shots and also laid down a barrage of 14 shots on goal.
They had 10 corner kicks to two for the visiting Panthers.
DePaul senior Alex Mangan had as many shots on goal (five) as the entire Eastern Illinois team.
"We played really well offensively but don't have anything to show for it," Blazer said as his team dropped to 2-3-1 on the season. "We did a lot of good things, did everything well except score."
Mangan had two dangerous header attempts in the first half with one glancing off the crossbar.
DePaul's leading scorer also had Panther goalkeeper Sean Molony one-on-one right in front of the net but missed on his re-direct opportunity.
Eastern Illinois (2-3-1) scored on a free kick by Graham Lynch just outside the penalty box in the 38th minute. The Panthers notched the insurance score in the 82nd minute when Ryan Child fired a shot from point-blank during a flurry in front of the DePaul net.
"We did so well to get a lot of good shots on goal," Blazer said. "Their goalkeeper made a lot of outstanding saves. He was the difference in the game.
"I guess today just wasn't our day. You've got to give it to Eastern's goalkeeper."
Molony came away with 14 saves and made a critical adjustment in the second half. After nearly getting burned on earlier corner kicks, Molony came out and aggressively snared the Blue Demon crosses before they had a chance of being re-directed.
"We made a mistake in the first half to allow the free kick that they scored the first goal," Blazer said. "But we responded well in the second half and had a lot of good shots.
"The final score isn't indicative of all the good things we did out there. But in the end, all that matters is the final score.
"We're going to tighten things up, learn from our mistakes and be ready for Drake on Tuesday."
The Blue Demons will take on the Bulldogs in a 4 p.m. match at Wish Field to close out their three-game home stand.
NOTES: Besides Mangan's game-high eight shots, Ray De Leon took three shots and Andre Gutierrez and Art Garza each had two... along with Mangan's six shots on goal, Gutierrez, De Leon and Garza each had two shots turned away by Molony... Eastern Illinois' physical style of play resulted in 17 fouls and two yellow cards while DePaul had seven fouls and one yellow card... this was the second time DePaul has been held scoreless this season... the Blue Demons lost to nationally ranked Creighton 2-0... on the season, Mangan leads the team with three goals, six points, 20 shots and nine shots on goal.. Matt Leinauer has one goal, eight shots and five shots on goal while Antonio Aguilar has one goal, seven shots and four shots on goal... DePaul has been outscored 8-5 and outshot 72-61 but has 35 shots on goal to 31 for the opposition.
