In Short..
After a dominant first half from the Loyola University Chicago men's soccer team, the Kentucky Wildcats made a huge comeback to defeat the Ramblers, 2-1 in double overtime. The Maroon & Gold conclude their season with a 11-5-4 record, while the Wildcats move to 13-4-3 and advance to the NCAA Second Round.
How It Happened
Loyola started out strong, possessing numerous offensive opportunities and creating defensive stops. The Ramblers out-shot Kentucky 4-0 in the first half, putting up two shots on goal. In the 14th minute, Justin Sukow sent a set piece inside to Aidan Megally, whose header nearly missed the goal and deflected off the crossbar. Andrew Mitchell put Loyola on the board first in the 35th minute, when Sukow took advance of a corner kick and passed to the edge of the box where Megally was waiting to pass inside to Mitchell, who turned around and fired.
The Ramblers defensive efforts continued, as Kentucky didn't put a shot on goal until the 57th minute. But, the Wildcats would continue to knock and eventually start to turn the match around. Kentucky then had back-to-back opportunities in the 65th minute, the first of which was struck out by the Loyola defense. The second opportunity brough Kentucky's Jansen Wilson one-on-one with Kampman, but he nearly missed and hit the right post.
In the 81st minute, Kentucky's Jason Reyes was able to notch the equalizer after Loyola was called with a penalty inside the box.
In the first overtime, Kampman came up big with three saves in three minutes for the Ramblers, who were unable to gain a shot opportunity. Within the first minute of double overtime, Kentucky would head in the heart-breaking goal to end Loyola's incredible season.
A Look At The Numbers
- Despite not recording a shot in the first half, Kentucky ended up leading the shot count, 12-6.
- The game turned physical as 29 total fouls were called one player on each team received a yellow card.
- Kampman recorded four saves and Loyola was credited with one team save.
- This is Loyola's third First Round NCAA Tournament match that entered overtime after the Ramblers previously fell to opponents Northwestern (2006) and Northern Illinois (2008).
- Today's loss concludes the careers of seniors Marius Kullmann, Aidan Megally and Chase Wright. Together they tallied 42 wins over their four seasons at Loyola, which sits fourth in program history. The last time a group of seniors tallied that many wins was from 1983-1986, with 44 total.
Coach Neil Jones' Thoughts
"I thought we were the better team in the first half but obviously Kentucky is going to make some changes at halftime and we knew that was coming," Jones said. "They had some good chances in the second half there and got what I thought was an interesting call in terms of the penalty kick and then we lost the guy on their right side for the overtime winner. It was a great header to win it, congrats to Kentucky. We're disappointed in the result, but filled with pride as to the team that we had out there tonight and the fight that we had for the entire game.
Jones on seniors Kullmann, Megally and Wright: "Obviously we just had a very emotional moment right now in the locker room sending these guys off because what they've given to this program is so much. They've been to two NCAA Tournament's now in their four years. They were a part of the first-ever Loyola team to win an NCAA Tournament game. They've just completely bought in and put everything on the line in their career for being a part of something bigger than themselves and that's what we're based on. We have a team-first mentality and these guys have epitomized that everyday for four years. What we lose most from these guys is character, leadership, Aidan with ten goals is going to be massively missed, but we're really excited about the direction of this program and the future. Being able to win a conference championship on our own field on Sunday with these three guys lifting the trophy was a moment I'll never forget."
Jones on accomplishing 2019 season goals: "We had three goals at the start of the year. Be the best team in Chicago. We did that. We beat Northwestern, DePaul and UIC. Get a Top. 2 seed in the conference to get to the semifinal. We did that. And win a championship on our home field and we did that. We didn't get as far as we wanted to go, obviously, but again, filled with pride and can't thank these three guys enough for everything that they gave to the program."