Sept. 4, 2011
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Alex Johnston scored the golden goal for Saint Louis in the 104th minute as the Billikens topped No. 10 Notre Dame 2-1 on Sunday afternoon at Bill Armstrong Stadium. The match was part of the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic.
The Fighting Irish concluded the tournament in third place with a 1-1 record. Indiana won the event with a 2-0 mark, while Saint Louis was second (1-1) and Dayton was fourth (0-2). Notre Dame midfielders Dillon Powers and Chris Sutton were named to the all-tournament team.
During the first day of the tournament on Friday, Notre Dame topped Dayton 4-1, while Indiana defeated Saint Louis 3-1. The Hoosiers downed Dayton 6-0 on Sunday.
Notre Dame (1-1-1) went on top in the 33rd minute on Sunday as junior forward Ryan Finley deposited the rebound of a Harrison Shipp shot that was saved by Billiken goalkeeper Nick Shackelford. It was Finley’s third goal in the past two matches.
Saint Louis (1-2-0) netted the equalizer in the 57th minute when Adnan Gabeljic sent in a deflected pass from William Hildago.
Less than a minute after the Billiken goal, Finley was issued a red card and the Irish played a man down for the remainder of the match.
“I was very, very disappointed with today’s game,” said Notre Dame head coach Bobby Clark. “In every statistic I think we were the better side even though we had a player ejected. Even playing a man down, I felt we controlled the game. To lose in the second overtime is pretty heartbreaking to be quite honest with you. It’ll take a little while for this to sink in because I felt we were such a better side. But that’s soccer sometimes.”
Notre Dame out shot Saint Louis 7-2 in the first half, yet the Billikens nearly scored with 19:10 left in the period as Mike Roach had a good look on goal from nine yards out, but sent his shot wide left. Notre Dame’s Danny O’Leary threatened in the 31st minute, but he placed his shot just wide of the far post from 19 yards out.
Finley nearly scored again with three minutes left in the half, but his shot from just outside the 18-yard box went wide of the frame. Notre Dame led 1-0 at halftime.
Saint Louis almost tied the match in the opening seconds of the second half as Kingsley Bryce put a shot on goal that was punched into the air by Irish goalkeeper Will Walsh and defender Grant Van De Casteele then cleared the ball away from the goal mouth.
Despite being a man down, Notre Dame continued to pressure the Billikens. In the 76th minute, Irish defender Greg Klazura put a low blast on goal from 10 yards out on the left side and Shackelford made a diving save to negate the chance.
Notre Dame’s Adam Mena looked like he had the game winner lined up in the final seconds of regulation, but his shot from eight yards out was blocked by a Billiken defender.
Irish midfielder Brendan King had a shot saved near the midway point of the first 10-minute overtime period. Sophomore forward Leon Brown had two shots, including one on goal, for Notre Dame in the early stages of the second overtime. The Irish outshot the Billikens 4-2 in overtime. Notre Dame held a 22-10 advantage in shots for the match in addition to gaining three more corner kicks (7-4) than the Billikens.
“After we lost Ryan Finley, I thought our team showed a lot of character,” stated Clark. “Even with playing a man down, we took over the game. Our fitness and grit and determination were very apparent today. I was proud of that, but obviously disappointed with the final result.”
Saint Louis’ golden goal sequence began with a cross from Raymond Lee and Johnston placed the ball into the back of the netting for the win.
Notre Dame will play host to the Mike Berticelli Memorial Tournament next weekend at Alumni Stadium. Indiana and Bucknell will get things underway at 5:00 p.m. (ET) on Friday, while the Irish will face Denver in the nightcap (7:30 p.m.). Indiana and Denver will meet at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday and the Notre Dame-Bucknell match will wrap things up at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.
adidas/IU Credit Union Classic
Bill Armstrong Stadium – Bloomington, Ind.
September 4, 2011
Saint Louis (1-2-0) 0 1 0 1 – 2
#10 Notre Dame (1-1-1) 1 0 0 0 – 1
Scoring: ND: Ryan Finley (Harrison Shipp) 32:17; SLU: Adnan Gabeljic (William Hildago) 56:12; SLU: Alex Johnston (Raymond Lee) 103:56
Shots: SLU 2-6-1-1 – 10, ND 7-11-2-2 – 22
Corner Kicks: SLU 1-3-0-0 – 4, ND 3-2-2-0 – 7
Goalkeepers: SLU: Nick Shackelford – 5 SV, 1 GA, 103:56, W
ND: Will Walsh – 0 SV (1 team save), 2 GA, 103:56, L
Fouls: SLU: 17, ND 11
Offsides: SLU 4, ND 5
–ND–