MILWAUKEE – An early goal from Raul Medina jump-started the contest and eventually helped the Milwaukee men's soccer team pick up a 1-1 draw in the battle for the "Milwaukee Cup" against Marquette Tuesday night at Engelmann Stadium.
 
"I think we are good with the result," head coach Kris Kelderman said. "Obviously, we always want to play to win but we faced a very good team coming in, especially their attacking group. We knew they had some dangerous individuals that we had to pay special attention to tonight."
 
The Panthers (2-4-1) held the lead against the Golden Eagles (6-1-1) well into the second half before surrendering the equalizer to their nationally-ranked opponents, who came into the game at No. 23 in the United Soccer Coaches national poll.
 
"We got off to a good start," Kelderman said. "Marquette got stronger as the game went on, which we kind of expected. But really proud of the effort as far as team defense goes and it started with the guys up front, making sure they were pressing properly and staying with runners to the guys in the midfield. It was a good team effort to get the point and the tie."
 
The MKE offense came out on the front foot, nearly finding the opening tally just 72 seconds into the match. David Cox rifled a blast from the right win off a nice pass from Bienvenu Djunga, but couldn't quite keep it on target and it sailed just over the far post.
 
It was Djunga again, helping set up the early Panther goal just a few minutes later after getting taken down in the box to set up the spot kick. Medina took the opportunity and buried it and the home team led just 3:59 into the match.
 
"I was really pleased with the start," Kelderman said. "Obviously, scoring the goal was huge. When you get a 1-0 lead, it always takes a little pressure off your back. But we did have a couple other looks so we were in the mix and creating some opportunities to get that second goal. It would have been nice to see if we got a second one how that changed the game but overall, I am pretty pleased with the performance tonight."
 
The offense recorded seven of the 11 first-half shots but couldn't break through for an insurance tally and settled for the 1-0 lead at the break.
 
Marquette responded in the second half and was much more dangerous, with some solid Milwaukee defense keeping them at bay until the 63^rd minute when the score was leveled at 1-1. Abdu Regassa had a decent look on a close-range attempt from a tough angle that was saved in the 74^th minute, but the team could not find a winner.
 
In net, Daniel Ibarra was credited with three saves on the night, including an impressive point-blank save in the 80^th minute and a final one with 40 seconds left in regulation to seal the deadlock.
 
"Daniel continues to do a great job for us and it means so much to the guys out on the field when you can feel really confident that, if there's a breakdown of any sort, you have a guy behind you that is going to bail you out or make a save," Kelderman said.
 
For the match, Marquette earned advantages of 15-11 in shots and 10-5 in corner kicks, but the Panthers grabbed the 6-4 edge in attempts on target. Medina paced the offense with three shots. With the result, however, MU does retain possession of the "Milwaukee Cup" until next year.
 
Up next, the Panthers return to league play Saturday, welcoming Robert Morris to town for a 1 p.m. start at Engelmann Stadium.