Aug. 24, 2009
Box Score
ROCHESTER, Mich. - Freshman Shane Lyons scored the lone goal of the game off a header as the Oakland University men's soccer team defeated in-state rival Western Michigan University 1-0 in exhibition play Monday at the OU Soccer Field.
"I have to give credit to Stu Riddle and his WMU team because they came out with a lot of energy and I felt they outplayed us significantly in the first half," said head coach Eric Pogue. "After making some adjustments, we played much better in the second half and were able to create opportunities for us and limit their scoring chances."
After a scoreless first half, Lyons headed the ball into the net off a feed from senior Stefan St. Louis at 54:01 to bring the game to what would be its final 1-0 score. Goalkeeper Mitch Hildebrandt played the full 90 minutes in the exhibition and made two saves for OU.
"In the second half, I felt that the younger players really stepped up and the substitutions we made really made a difference," said Pogue. "We found a way to win and that's always a good sign with a young team. We just couldn't put two big halves together and that shows we still have some work to do, so we're going to go back to the drawing board tomorrow morning."
The Golden Grizzlies will conclude preseason play on Friday, Aug. 28, when they will take on Loyola Chicago at 8 p.m. EST in Fort Wayne, Ind.
-30-
