Men's Soccer Comes Up Short Against 18th Ranked Madonna

(Livonia, MI)-- For the third consecutive game, the Cleary Cougar men's soccer team held a lead in the second half of a WHAC matchup.  Unfortunately, for the third consecutive game, the Cougars' opponent overtook Cleary and handed Cleary a loss, as theMadonna Crusaders went on to win by a 2-1 score.

The Cougars were content to defend and attempt to hit on the counter in the first half, as the Crusaders outshot the Cougars 12-5 in the opening half of action.  The defense was up to the task, however, and limited the Crusaders to few truly dangerous chances.  Cleary's patience paid off, and in the 38th minute, the Cougars pounced and took the lead.  Atario Brown sent in a ball to the back post that was partially cleared, but fell to Luca Taylor.  Taylor won the ball, but wasn't able to put any power on it towards goal, and his shot attempt took a deflection before ultimately falling to Leonardo Vitali, who put the ball into the back of net.

Cleary's plan was continuing to work in the second half, but a pair of unlucky bounces changed the game.  In the 61st minute, Madonna played a long ball that took a unusual bounce, that allowed the Crusaders to get behind the defense.  This forced goalkeeper Austin Freemire to have to come out and defend, trying to win the ball.  There was contact in the box, and a foul was called, sending the Crusaders to the penalty spot with a chance to tie the game.  MU's Ryushin Hirami would convert in the 62nd minute, and the game would be tied 1-1.  Twelve minutes later, the second of unlucky breaks would take place, as Madonna fired a shot that was heading towards the left side of the goal, but was deflected by a Cougar defender, remained on target, and went into the net, making the score 2-1.  The Cougars would push forward, earning some corner kicks late, even sending Austin Freemire into the attack on those free kicks, but were unable to earn an equalizer, as the game ended with a 2-1 score.

Austin Freemire made 13 saves in the game on 15 shots faced in a losing effort.  Cleary was outshot 25-8 in the game.  Cleary also committed more fouls in the game, with a 16-8 margin.

The loss drops Cleary's record to 8-5 overall, 2-4 in the WHAC.  The Cougars will look to rebound on Saturday, October 11, when they host the Rochester Christian Warriors for a 7:00 kick-off as part of Cleary's Homecoming.