Men's Soccer Dealt A Shutout Defeat Against Illinois Wesleyan

BLOOMINGTON, Ill.—The Fontbonne University men's soccer team continued its non-conference stretch on Wednesday night as they took on Illinois Wesleyan. However, the Griffins were dealt a 2-0 defeat against the Titans.

"We played well against a tough side in Illinois Wesleyan," said head coach Donnie Alberty. "When we were down 1-0 with 25 minutes left, we're always going to start throwing numbers forward. We did and they got the second goal, even after that though we still kept battling."

Alberty added, "Like we told the guys, it's all part of the grind of a season. There is no time to be down and really nothing to be down about. It's all part of the process."

The Griffins totaled 13 shots on the evening and were led by Corey Schmidt's team-high four. In net, Tony Pitaro was dealt the tough loss after making six saves.

On the other half of the field, the Titans finished with 19 shots and standing out was Doug Ballard's one goal on a team-high five shots. Justin Yaeger, meanwhile, added the other goal and chipped in an assist. In goal, Joey Johnson stopped all six of FBU's shots.

After the shot totals were tied 2-2 early in the first half, the Titans broke through at the 19:25 mark. Mason Maier crossed the ball over for Yaeger and he slid across the box, kicking in his attempt to give them a 1-0 lead.

The Griffins put on the pressure late with shots coming from Schmidt in the 32^nd minute and Marc Roellig with just seconds remaining, but the Titans were able to head into the break on top by one.

Fontbonne continued its pressure in the 63^rd minute as Nick Nelson and Schmidt each had shot attempts that were saved by Johnson.

Then, after hitting the post in the 82^nd minute, IWU put the game away at 83:13. Yaeger crossed the ball into the box and he found Ballard who scored, extending the lead out to 2-0. FBU tried to cut into the deficit, but Johnson was stout in net, allowing IWU to go on for the two goal win.

The Griffins will be back at it on Thursday, September 28^th, when they'll pay a visit to Harris-Stowe State University. Kick-off at 3:30 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates and recaps on the men's soccer team.