Coming off a draw on Saturday to UConn, the Marquette men’s soccer team headed down I-94 in search of earning three points in the Big East standings.
However, the Golden Eagles will have to wait a few more days to reach that feat as they fell to the DePaul Blue Demons 1-0 Wednesday afternoon.
“Game day started with a last minute team sheet change as senior goalkeeper Chandler Hallwood joined several others on the injured list, leaving us a talented but inexperienced lineup to battle DePaul,” Marquette head coach Louis Bennett said in a statement. “Neither team could create good chances until DePaul were awarded a penalty kick in the second half that proved to be enough to take the win and the three points. That combined to make a disappointing day for us.”
The first half was a defensive performance by both teams as both headed into the locker room tied 0-0. The Blue Devils held the Golden Eagles to just one corner kick in the first half to DePaul’s three.
DePaul quickly put on the pressure in the beginning of the second half but Marquette first-year goalkeeper Ludvig Malberg came up with two big save to keep the game scoreless.
Eight minutes into the half minute a shot from sophomore midfielder Julian Saldana almost found the back of the net but Malberg got a hand on it allowing for the ball to hit the crossbar.
DePaul then struck in the 78th minute when a collision at the far edge of the penalty box resulted in a penalty kick opportunity for DePaul. Senior defender Jake Fuderer took the shot and put the game-winning goal behind Marquette first-year goalkeeper Ludvig Malberg.
Malberg finished with a tied career-high of six saves while facing 14 total shots in his sixth start of the season.
The Golden Eagles were held to a season low of two corner kicks and 12 shots on goal.
Marquette (4-8-3, 0-4-3 Big East) will return home to Valley Fields Saturday to face Creighton at 7 p.m. CST.
This article was written by Catherine Fink. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at CatherineFinkMU.