Sept. 1, 2009

Box Score |  Quotes (Video)

MILWAUKEE - Calum Mallace scored the only goal of the game in the 85th minute to help Marquette University escape with a 1-0 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team Tuesday night at Valley Fields. The Golden Eagles (1-0-0) retain possession of the Milwaukee Cup with the victory over the Panthers (0-1-0) in a match that was the season opener for both squads.

"That was a tough loss, but we battled," UWM head coach Jon Coleman said. "I think we showed that we have talent, we showed that we have character and gave the effort. We put ourselves in a situation where the game could have gone either way in the last 10 minutes. I think we were just unfortunate to give up that free kick."

After a foul in the run of play, Mallace sent a 35-yard free kick to the upper left corner of the far post at the 84:10 mark. UWM pushed forward in the final minutes of regulation but could not get any opportunities for the equalizer. The goal spoiled a fine performance by freshman goalkeeper John Shakon in his collegiate debut, who finished with five saves.

"John (Shakon) handled himself very well and made some great saves," Coleman said. "He was at his best at times when we were at our worst. I think he really put a quality performance together."

The Panthers, outshot 13-to-3 in the game, were playing shorthanded and without their top two returning scorers from last season due to injury.

The second half did not feature many quality chances for either side. Marquette came up with a flurry of offense just into the second half, putting up three shots and forcing three corner kicks in a span of less than a minute on the clock. However, Shakon was up to the task, making two saves - one at point-blank range.

The first half was back-and-forth, with neither team dominating possession for long periods of time. Milwaukee was credited with three shots, with sophomore Tony Maxey and junior Greg Rosenthal each coming up with a quality chance.

Maxey's came in the 21st minute, when his close-range attempt was on target from the top of the box but was blocked up-and-over the cross bar.

Junior Peter Sanger took a lead pass and had a one-on-one attempt in the goal box, but had his shot saved by the MU keeper in the 36th minute. After a corner kick following that, Rosenthal sent his header just wide in the 37th minute.

Shakon was credited with three saves in the first half, making a nice stop of a 25-yard free kick in the 26th minute.

In addition to the shot advantage, the Golden Eagles forced 11 corner kicks to three for Milwaukee, while both teams were whistled for 13 fouls each. The match also saw six yellow cards get handed out.

The Panthers head to Madison for the weekend, taking on Western Illinois and Virginia Tech in the Middleton Sports & Fitness Invitational, hosted by the Wisconsin Badgers. First game in the event is Friday at 5 p.m., taking on WIU.