DETROIT, Mich. – A pair of goals early in the second half helped the Milwaukee men's soccer team turn a 1-0 halftime deficit into a 2-1 victory over Detroit Mercy Friday afternoon from Titans Field.
The Panthers (6-4-6, 4-1-4 Horizon League) got goals from
Jack Bretzmann and
Dominic Zuniga in the first five minutes of the second half to flip the script against the Titans (4-9-3, 3-5-1 Horizon League). The defense had to do the rest, including playing the final 14 minutes down a man due to a red card.
"Massive win for the group today," head coach
Kris Kelderman said. "Another three points on the road. That puts us at 4-0-1 for the season in Horizon League play for away games, on the road. That's a tough task to pull off. And the guys showed not only some pretty good soccer, specifically in the first half, but we had to roll up our sleeves and fight in the second half. The game got a little chippy, got physical, we went down a man, so we had to play a man short."
The victory had huge implications in the Horizon League standings, as Milwaukee shot up to 16 points and reached second place at the time, and stayed there after the remaining league games were completed Friday evening.
"The guys showed how tough we can be defensively as a group today, and that's been our strength all season long," Kelderman said. "So, goalkeeping, backline, team defense was outstanding again."
Down, 1-0, at the break despite a strong performance, the Panthers came out of the locker room on a mission. The first goal was started by
Hur Irizar Lekue, who won possession and carried through the midfield. He found Bretzmann on the wing, firing on goal. The ball was deflected by a backline defender and officially scored as an own goal, but it was all Bretzmann's effort to make it 1-1 at the 45:42 mark.
"Detroit's always a tough environment to play," Kelderman said. "The goal they scored in the first half was a great goal from 25 yards out, great shot. Not a whole lot you can do with something like that. But still thought we stayed the course and played pretty well in the first half, and got our opportunities in the second half, and pulled a big three points out."
Just four minutes later, a foul set up MKE in a good spot. Zuniga stepped up, drilling home the free kick from about 25 yards out for the eventual game-winner at the 49:59 mark.
Carson Pridie and the defense did the rest, closing out the Titans with a strong effort the rest of the way. Pridie came up with a solid header chance in the box in the 85
th minute, made a great diving save at the post in the 71
st and also had a good save on a shot from distance in the 63
rd to preserve the comeback win; all done with just 10 on the field the final 13:52.
Milwaukee started the day out of the gates firing, getting shots off just 70 seconds in (Zuniga) in addition to the fourth minute (
Praise Ogwu), as well as seeing a tough save get made on a shot from
Roy Nozawa in the fifth minute.
Detroit Mercy turned the momentum in the 13
th minute, rifling home a ball that appeared to be on its way from being cleared out of danger. That goal stood up into the break despite the 11-5 advantage Milwaukee had in first-half shots taken.
On the day, the home side ended up with advantages of 18-15 in total shots, 5-4 in shots on goal, and 6-2 in corner kicks. Irizar Lekue led the offense with five shot attempts, while Pridie wrapped up the victory credited with four saves.
"One game to go against Green Bay – big rivalry, cup game – to determine where we're at with one game on Tuesday," Kelderman said. "So, we're super excited about the match on Tuesday."
Up next, the Panthers have that final contest left in the regular season, welcoming Green Bay Tuesday to Engelmann Stadium. It will be a huge game for Milwaukee, who will also be battling the Phoenix for the "Chancellor's Cup", hosting "Senior Day" festivities, as well as battling for final league postseason positioning. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
