Aug 21, 2013

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team scored a pair of goals in each half to earn a 4-0 victory over Lewis University Wednesday night in the 2013 home exhibition opener at Engelmann Stadium.

"The result was nice ... winning 4-0, especially in soccer, you don't see that too often," head coach Kris Kelderman said. "On top of that, the four goals were really nice goals. Two were on restarts and two were in the run of play and we were very pleased with that."

Senior Robbie Boyd and newcomers Aaron Cranfill, Luke Goodnetter and Andrew Stone all found the back of the net to lead the offense, while a trio of goalkeepers combined for five saves to lead the Panthers to a commanding victory over the Flyers.

"The first three goals were from the guys that transferred from Green Bay that had to sit out all of last year," Kelderman said. "Those are exciting moments for those guys. And Robbie had a brilliant goal. We are happy for him - he has been working his tail off and it was a really nice goal."

Junior Agustin Rey played the first 30 minutes in goal without recording a save before redshirt freshman Jonathan Stahr came on for the next 30 minutes. Stahr made one save and was relieved by freshman Liam Anderson, who ended the night with four saves to keep the shutout intact.

"The keeper position - those three guys did well and they all know they are competing for the starting position," Kelderman said. "We have a plan moving forward getting everyone some minutes."

A fast-paced, back-and-forth start to the game was opened up in the 33rd minute. Junior Laurie Bell found Stone with a perfectly-placed corner kick and Stone did the rest, heading it into the net at the 32:14 mark.

"It was a tough game," Kelderman said. "Lewis had more of a defensive approach. It was a really good exercise for our group to play against a team that was a little more defensive-minded. There is room to grow, we could have been better, but considering we are about one week into preseason we are moving along where we want to."

It stayed 1-0 on the scoreboard until just before halftime. Newcomer Austin Toth sent a long serve from the left wing to the far post, where it was met by Goodnetter's header to make it 2-0 with less than a minute remaining before intermission.

The offense picked up the pace in the second half, outshooting Lewis 11-to-7 the final 45 minutes in adding two more strikes. Cranfill was in the right place at the right time to put home a partially-saved header off a corner kick and Boyd netted an impressive long blast unassisted at the 87:57 mark to close out the scoring.

Goodnetter finished with a goal and an assist to lead the way. UWM ended with a 17-to-12 advantage in shots, with freshman Rami Younes pacing the squad with three. Kelderman used numerous substitutes on the night, with 20 different players seeing action.

Anderson made a pair of impressive saves to keep Lewis off the scoreboard, deflecting a deep shot at the corner up-and-over the post in the 63rd minute and making a diving stop in a one-on-one situation in the 73rd minute as well.

The team remains at home for the final exhibition contest of the preseason, welcoming Parkside Sunday evening to Engelmann Stadium for a 7 p.m. start.