DAYTON, OHIO -- Eastern Illinois men's soccer put on a gutsy performance against one of the top offenses in the nation, but came up short in a 2-0 road loss to the 17th-ranked Dayton Flyers. With the loss, the Panthers drop to 1-3-1 on the season.
The first half was highlighted by yet another sound defensive effort from the Panthers as
Chad Smith record four saves and
William Bruce deflected two passes to keep the Flyers off the scoreboard for the first 45 minutes despite facing 20 Dayton shots in the first period. Offensively,
Prince Okonny got a good look early, but the Panthers were unable to take advantage due to an offsides call. The Panthers were afforded back-to-back corner kick opportunities midway through the first half, but were turned away both times as the first half ended in a scoreless tie.
Dayton continued their flurry of offense with 10 shots in the first 13 minutes of the second half, but Smith and the EIU defense continued to stand their ground. The Flyers were eventually able to break through with a goal off of a penalty kick in the 65th minute to take a 1-0 lead. Smith recorded an additional nine saves in the second half to keep EIU in it, but Dayton ultimately put the game away with a second goal in the 87th minute.
Despite the loss, Smith turned in an exceptional performance at goalkeeper, recording a career-high 13 saves in 45 shots faced in 87 minutes of action. All-in-all, the Panthers allowed just two goals in 51 shots faced.
Okonny and
Casey Welage accounted for EIU's two shots, both coming in the second half. The Panthers also recorded three corner kick opportunities.
Up next, the Panthers will head south to take on the Huskies of Houston Baptist on Saturday, September 17. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 PM CT.
