The freshmen class of the Marquette men’s soccer team earned the right to hoist the Milwaukee Cup Tuesday, as the team defeated cross-town rival Wisconsin-Milwaukee for just the third time ever in 37 encounters.
“It’s just how it’s always been,” redshirt sophomore defender Scott Miller said. “Until you’ve won the trophy, until you are a part of it, you can’t touch it. We had (the trophy) at our pre-game meal and none of the young guys were allowed to touch it. And fortunately we got the result and they were able to hold it.”
Coach Louis Bennett showed a lot of confidence in the younger players against UW-Milwaukee, playing four of his freshman recruits, including Andy Huftalin and Anthony Selvaggi. The freshmen provided strength and pace up front and allowed the Golden Eagles’ offense to push forward. Sophomore forward Chris Madsen earned his first start after failing to play all of last season.
However, it was another sophomore who stole the show at Valley Fields. Midfielder Calum Mallace tallied four of Marquette’s 13 shots Tuesday, two of which were on target, and scored the game-winning goal in the 84th minute. The goal came off a set piece 35 yards out that Mallace fired into the upper-left corner of the net after a fake attempt by midfielder Anthony Colaizzi.
The goal was Mallace’s second against UW-Milwaukee, both being the game-winners.
“We put the challenge out to Mallace last year,” Bennett said. “Anyone who wanted to be our free kick taker would have to practice 200 a week. Minimum. Mallace takes about 300. He’s very diligent and he will make sure he gets it done.
“It was a thing of beauty. If you were wearing blue and gold there is no way you can’t think that was one of the most beautiful things you’ve ever seen.”
Mallace had two opportunities to score in the first half. The first came in the 26th minute off a set piece from 20 yards away, but the kick was re-directed by the hands of the UW-Milwaukee goalkeeper. In the 40th minute, midfielder Amilcar Herrera sent a free kick ball into the box, which found the head of Mallace, who sent the ball just over the crossbar.
“I’ve played UWM twice in my career, and I’ve scored two goals,” Mallace said. “You can’t ask for anything more. I had a couple of chances that I couldn’t put away. But I’ve been practicing all week. I figured if I can do it in practice then I can do it in a game.”
Marquette will look to continue its run of form in Des Moines, Iowa this Sunday as the team will take on Drake.