Oct. 11, 2008

Box Score

Box Score vs. Seton Hall (PDF)

MILWAUKEE -- Marquette's struggling offense responded in a big way Saturday at Valley Fields as eight different Golden Eagles registered at least one shot on goal against visiting Seton Hall. Following two overtime periods, neither team had earned the decision and instead settled for a 1-1 draw.

"I told them they can enjoy this, because they played well," said MU head coach Louis Bennett. "But I'm sure once they see the game film, they may think it was two points lost, not one point gained. That was a good game of soccer, if you're a soccer purist. I thought we played well today."

Junior forward Nick Kay suffered a broken nose but one of his three headers found the back of the net off a cross from MU teammate Anthony Colaizzi. Kay precisely directed the ball far post, into the upper left corner, for the equalizer in the 63rd minute of action. It was the first MU goal since Kay tallied the game-winner at Cincinnati on Sept. 28.

"As we're taught, I tried to knock it back across the other side of the goal, because if the goalie's coming across it's kind of hard for him to dive back from the side he's coming from," Kay explained. "I was able to put it right where I wanted to thanks to a great serve from Anthony."

A free kick taken by Pirates sophomore Steven Rose in the 50th minute had given Seton Hall a 1-0 advantage. Marquette freshman Paul Monsen was called for a foul near the top left corner of the box. Rose converted on the set piece by curling the ball over the MU wall and into the top left corner of the net.

Marquette set the tone early with a pair of one-on-one chances with the Seton Hall keeper within the first three minutes of play. Once the Golden Eagles were able to settle in, they became more dangerous with a total of eight shots on goal in the second half.

"I felt that if we would have scored on one of those two [one-on-one] chances, we could have had an avalanche of goals," said Bennett. "Give credit where credit is do. Our guys stuck to the game plan. We exploited their weaknesses. We had opportunities, and we were dynamic."

Coming into the match, Seton Hall ranked second in the BIG EAST in shots taken, while MU ranked second to last. Unexpectedly, Marquette's 19 shot attempts, including 10 shots on goal, were both season highs. Expectedly, Seton Hall managed 16 shots Saturday -- seven shots on goal -- and had the only four opportunities in overtime. MU had just two shots on goal combined in its previous two contests.

"I felt like we were in a flow and we were moving off the ball a lot tonight," said Kay. "We've been working on that in training. Just getting everybody up top to move off the ball a little bit more and not be so set in our positions. Almost free-playing it a little bit more. And I felt like we did a really good job of that. That movement really helped free up space for us and develop a lot more of an attack. That was progress for us we feel."

Matt Pyzdrowski recorded five saves for Marquette and Seton Hall's Paul McHenry made eight stops. Both keepers entertained fans with acrobatic plays between the posts.

Seton Hall remains unbeaten in overtime games (3-0-1) and stays one spot above Marquette in the Blue Division standings at 6-5-2 overall and 2-3-2 in league play. Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles move to 2-5-4 on the season and 1-4-2 in the BIG EAST.

Marquette will now prepare for Wednesday's non-conference fixture with in-state rival Wisconsin. The Badgers (4-4-2) are coming off a 4-0 win over UW-Milwaukee. Kick off is slated for 7:05 p.m. at Valley Fields. Live streaming audio courtesy of Marquette Radio (WMUR) will available and the game will be televised tape delay on Time Warner Sports (Ch. 32).