Purdue Fort Wayne
Cleveland State
Hot Offense Leads 'Dons to 2-1 Win
10/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 14, 2009
Fort Wayne, IN - In a game best described as fast, physical and frozen, it was the IPFW offense that shined, as a pair of Mastodon second-half goals gave the 'Dons a 2-1 victory over Cleveland State.
Neither side was able to crack the scoreboard in the first half of action. The scoreless opening period has been a trademark of the Mastodon defense all season long. The first half clean sheet is the 'Dons eighth in 14 games on the year.
As the frigid temperatures continued to drop in the second half, the IPFW offense heated up. Just minutes into the second half, sophomore Colin Helmrich collected a ball in the box and, through a crowd of defenders, fired a shot past the outstretched arms of Viking keeper Brad Stuver to give the 'Dons a quick 1-0 lead in the half. The unassisted tally is Helmrich's third goal of the season.
In the game's 66th minute, a Cleveland State free kick that nearly found the net was pulled from the scramble and cleared. Mastodon forward Max Touloute found himself under the deep clear with just two defenders ahead of him. After a quick step to lose the first defender and a physical move to shoulder past the second, Touloute saw the light. He fired a laser to the Upper 90, giving the 'Dons what would eventually become the game winner.
Touloute's tally is his fifth of the season, matching his team-best total from 2008.
With just under six minutes remaining in the match, Cleveland State's Josh Williams took a pass from teammate John Wargo through the middle of the box and converted to cut the lead to 2-1. But as had been the story for most of the game, the Mastodon offense controlled the tempo and ball for the remainder of the game to close out the 2-1 victory.
In all, the 'Dons outshot the Vikings 21-11, including an on-goal advantage that stood at 6-3. The physical match also saw a total of 27 fouls and six yellow cards between the two sides.
Junior keeper Donovan Dowling posted two saves, while Touloute logged a team-high eight shots.
IPFW will return to non-conference action Saturday as they travel to SIU-Edwardsville. Kick-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
~Dons~
