Purdue Fort Wayne
Centenary
Centenary Shuts Out 'Dons in Summit Opener
9/25/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 25, 2009
Fort Wayne, IN – An eye-opening 23 shots were fired off the foot of a Mastodon in Friday night’s match. But not a single one could slip through, as the ‘Dons fell to Centenary in their 2009 Summit League opener, 1-0.
The finest of the Mastodons’ 23 attempts came from sophomore Max Touloute in the game’s 29th minute. Liridon Qafleshi bent a corner kick to the front of the cage to a waiting, wide-open Touloute. Touloute leaned in, heading it perfectly past keeper Rennie Walker. There waiting was a Gents defender who denied the shot at the goal line with a header of his own, clearing the ball and squashing the IPFW scoring opportunity.
The game’s momentum never fell far from the Mastodons side throughout the first half. The ‘Dons headed to the halftime break knotted at zero, despite controlling the ball for much of the period and out-shooting the Gents 14-6.
The second half began in much the same way, as the ‘Dons kept the offensive pressure on Centenary with a pair of shots on goal in the opening minutes.
Ten minutes into the period, Gents forward Tate McIntyre broke the tie, blasting a rebound past the outstretched arms of Donovan Dowling for the game’s only score. The goal is his first of the season.
But the Gents were far from being satisfied. The tables turned with the score and Centenary kept the pressure on the ‘Dons.
Centenary’s John McHugh nearly added another tally as his deep free kick from 40 yards out bounced off the leaping hand of Dowling and hit the cross bar, preserving the one-goal margin by inches. Just minutes later, Gents forward Brian Hurlburt misfired a two-on-one opportunity that again missed by inches.
With the time and offensive chances dwindling, the ‘Dons’ last ditch efforts came up short. The final horn sounded and the Summit League opener officially fell into the loss column.
IPFW out-shot Centenary 23-13 on the night. Junior Raphael Martinez led the ‘Dons offense with six shots, while Qafleshi added four. Dowling totaled four saves on the night, while his counterpart Walker posted seven stops for the Gents.
The ‘Dons fall to 3-5-1 on the year and will return to action Sunday as they travel to Charleston, Ill. for a 1:00 p.m. kickoff with the Panthers of Eastern Illinois University. Summit League play continues next Friday (Oct. 2) as they travel to Tulsa, Okla. for an 8:30 p.m. ET matchup with the Golden Eagles.
~Dons~
