Sept. 20, 2014 Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash. (UNLVRebels.com) - Facing a 2-0 halftime deficit and forced to play shorthanded, the 23rd-ranked UNLV men's soccer team nearly pulled off an impressive rally until Gonzaga scored the go-ahead in the 68th minute and added an insurance goal in the final minute in a 4-2 win over the Rebels on Saturday afternoon at Luger Field. UNLV suffered its first loss of the season, dropping to 5-1-1 overall while Gonzaga, playing its third ranked team of the season, improved to 1-5 in its second home game of 2014.
"Gonzaga is a very strong organized team that has had one of the toughest schedules to start the season," said UNLV head coach Rich Ryerson. "Their record in no way reflects the talent they possess."
UNLV had entered the day with the longest shutout streak in the nation. That was snapped in the 14th minute when Gonzaga took a 1-0 lead on a blast by Jakob Granlund from 22 yards out that curled to the right post and over the reach of Rebel keeper Ryan Harding. The lead remained at 1-0 for the majority of the half, but the story of the game changed in the 34th minute. That was when Rebel defender Connor Coletti was given a red card for a foul on a potential scoring opportunity. That forced the Rebels to go the rest of the way with just 10 players, and three of the Bulldogs goals would come when UNLV was playing shorthanded.
The Bulldogs didn't take long to take advantage of their man up situation, as Granlund notched his second score of the game, a shot from 15 yards out to put the Bulldogs ahead 2-0 in the 37th minute. That would be the halftime score as well, and UNLV finished the first half with just two shots total, none on goal, to five for the Bulldogs. "We allowed two early counter attacks and handcuffed ourselves with the red card," said Ryerson."
UNLV showed it would not go quietly, scoring a pair of goals in a four-minute burst to knot the contest at 2-2. The Rebels' first goal came in the 56th minute following a handball by a Bulldog defender just outside the box. Defender Bradley Kamdem took the free kick from 18 yards out, and curved a shot to the top right corner of the goal, closing UNLV to within 2-1.
The Rebels kept up the pressure to keep the ball on the Gonzaga side of the field, and that led to a ball entering the box that was deflected high into the box before dropping near the front of the goal. Bulldog goalkeeper Chris Lowrimore came out to grab the ball, but Rebel defender Kyle Mellies beat him to it, sliding in to get a foot on the ball and send it into the goal. That tied the contest at 2-2 in the 59th minute. Danny Musovski and Kevin Partida were credited with assists on the Mellies score.
Gonzaga answered back in the 68th minute when Conner Bevans sent a pass across the middle, and Zach Hamer connected from 12 yards out to make the score 3-2. UNLV was able to create a couple of scoring chances over the rest of the game but couldn't finish them off. The Bulldogs meanwhile took advantage of the Rebel push forward in the final minute to score on a counter attack with just 37 seconds left in the game. That final score came when Beavans beat off a defender on a long pass and scored from 15 yards out for the 4-2 edge.
"It was an outstanding second half effort to tie the game at 2-2 with ten players," said Ryerson." We just couldn't finish the game out with the disadvantage. Now we have to regroup and get back at it next week."
UNLV was outshot for the first time this season, 16-13, while Gonzaga's shots on goal were 8-6. UNLV took eight corner kicks to two for the Bulldogs. Harding finished with four saves in goal, and Lowrimore was also credited with four stops.
The Rebels return to action next weekend with the UNLV Rebel Classic. The first opponent will be No. 6 UC Irvine on Friday at 7 pm, followed by a Sunday, Sept. 28 matchup with UC Riverside at 1 pm. Both games will be at Peter Johann Memorial Field.
