As the clock winded down in the 90th minute it appeared that the Golden Eagles would go unbeaten on their home stretch. Then, an equalizing goal from Northern Illinois’ leading scorer Luke Read dashed those hopes, and the goal eventually paved the way for a NIU overtime victory.
“At times it appeared too easy, and we squandered a lot of chances in the first half,” said Marquette head coach Louis Bennett. “We made some fatal errors.”
Read, who scored the game winners in the Huskies’ previous two matches, capitalized on likely NIU’s last serious chance of the evening. NIU defenseman Richard Hall sent a ball into the box following a corner. Freshman keeper Wicho Barraza stopped the first shot, but the Huskies had five players packed into the box. Read got the rebound and a desperation save from Barraza came up just short.
Taylor Cole scored the golden goal in the in the 102nd minute, a side bicycle kick that Barraza had no chance of stopping. The shot arched right under the crossbar.
“He pulled something out (that was) unexpected,” Bennett said. “It was a very fine goal. No one expected him to do that.”
The NIU equalizer came just eight minutes after Marquette senior forward David Selvaggi broke the 1-1 tie. He received a perfect cross from junior defender Jake Taylor to put the Golden Eagles ahead late.
“Jake just played a beautiful ball and I was able to beat my defender inside and get a foot on it,” Selvaggi said.
Failing to close out the game was a serious red flag for the Golden Eagles, who have given up shots late on more than one occasion. The Golden Eagles struggled with clears on both opportunities.
Bennett said that even if Marquette hadn’t squandered its lead, he still wouldn’t have liked the performance.
“It would have felt better tomorrow morning, but actually we would have still had to cover a lot of things we spoke about,” Bennett said.
The Golden Eagles begin their conference schedule next week at St. John’s. Marquette will be away from Valley Fields for four matches, returning on October 10th for a game against Seton Hall.
News and Notes
• The Golden Eagles end their home stand with a 2-1 record, with wins over Dayton and Omaha. Those victories earned them four votes in the latest NSCAA rankings.
• “I’ve been happy with the progress,” Bennett said. “Today we probably took a little step back. I think today we looked a little bit young at times and a little bit naïve. I think it’s all part of that game hardening. There aren’t too many teams who play like that in the Big East, but there are a couple. That gives us a good insight.”
• Senior Kelmend Islami scored the Golden Eagles goal in the first half, extending his team lead in points. His four goals is now a new career high. He had another opportunity earlier in the half, but his shot was stopped by the head of a Huskies defender.
• This game is Barraza’s second career loss. He and the Golden Eagles have yet to lose a game in regulation.
