Men’s Soccer Drops 1-0 Decision To No. 20 Loyola Marymount 9/13/02

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Vanderbilt men’s soccer team (1-3) gave it their all on Friday evening against No. 20-ranked Loyola Marymount (4-0-1) in the opening round of the Vanderbilt/Puma Soccer Classic; however, it fell short in its upset bid as the Commodores lost, 1-0.

The Commodores look to end a three-game losing streak on Sunday afternoon when they play Appalachian State (3-1) at 2 p.m. in the final game of the tournament at the Vanderbilt Soccer Complex . Loyola Marymount will take on Eastern Illinois (1-1), who lost to Appalachian State 2-1 Friday evening, in the opening game Sunday at 12 p.m.

Vanderbilt and Loyola Marymount battled right from the start with a high level of intensity. Both teams had their chances early on, but were not able to convert. The Lions cracked the scoreboard first when forward Auturo Torres knocked home a shot following two quick passes from midfielders Brian Vestal and Kevin Novak. Vanderbilt goalkeeper Matt Gotterer made an attempt at stopping the shot, but was unsuccessful in his effort.

Both teams managed several scoring opportunities in the first half, but besides Torres’ goal, no one else was able to score. The Commodores outshot the Lions 11-9 in the first half, and both Gotterer and LMU goalkeeper Robert Flores were kept busy as they registered five and nine saves, respectively.

The level of play continued to increase in the second half along with the physical play. For the game, Loyola Marymount was called for 14 fouls, while Vanderbilt was issued 13. The defenses stepped up in the second half, as neither team was able to put a goal on the board. For the entire second half, both teams combined for only nine shots. Torres led the Lions with seven shots, while forward Jimmy Stone led the Commodores with three. Gotterer and Flores both had solid performances for their respective teams. Gotterer finished with seven saves, while Flores tallied 12 in recording the shutout.