SOUTH BEND, Ind. - The
Green Bay (14-3-3) men's soccer team's historic season came to end in the first
NCAA tournament game played at Alumni Stadium at Notre Dame. Green Bay's impressive
second half performance wasn't enough to upset #19 Notre Dame (11-7-4) in the
first round of the NCAA tournament as the Phoenix was defeated 2-1.
For the majority of the first half Notre Dame controlled the
ball, testing Green Bay's tough defense, "I thought the first half we got off
to a slow start but we played a great second half and swung the momentum of the
game," said head coach Tom Poitras.
After Notre Dame had three looks at the goal Green Bay got
its first shot at the goal in the 23rd minute off a header by JC Banks (Milwaukee, Wis.) but he was wide left.
In the 25th minute Notre Dame had an open look at
the goal but goalkeeper Ryan Wehking (St. Louis, Mo.) came up with a big save. On
the other end of the field the Phoenix answered with a shot from David Znaty
(Hadera, Israel) when keeper Andrew Quinn was there for the stop.
The first goal of the game came in the 29th
minute when Notre Dame's Dillon Powers ran out of room on the dribble deep on
the right side and kicked it back in the box. Bright Dike came from the top of
the box to land the ball past Wehking in the lower left corner of the net for
the 1-0 lead at the break.
At the conclusion of the first half, the Fighting Irish
outshot the Phoenix 7-4 with four shots on goal compared to Green Bay's one.
Under 10 minutes into the second half, Green Bay's David Prochazka (Gothenburg, Sweden) kicked the ball in on the corner kick for the
Phoenix. Banks had a look at the net when his shot barely went over the cross
bar. The shot was Banks' second on goal in a matter of three minutes.
With just over 23 minutes to play Notre Dame's Justin Morrow
found Jeb Brovsky who gave the Fighting Irish the 2-1 lead. Brovsky faked left
but shot the ball into the right side of the back of the net.
Green Bay marched right down the field and answered when
Banks found Tony Walls (Wauwatosa, Wis.) in the box to cut Notre Dame's lead in
half. The goal was Walls' fourth on the season and the first ever scored by the
Phoenix in the NCAA tournament.
Just over 14 minutes to play, Green Bay had two very close
shots on goal from Banks and Znaty but Notre Dame's defense was too big. With
less than five minutes to play, Banks was in the middle of the box and took a shot
only to hit the post and send a sense of urgency on the field for the Phoenix.
With the winds picking up, the Irish clinging to a one-goal
lead and 0:14 left on the clock, Green Bay rushed to get a final corner kick
attempt and Tony Patterson's (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) header shot was the
closest look at the goal the Phoenix got all night off a set play.
"The way we performed in the second half proved to the guys
we belong in the tournament and can compete at a very high level," said
Poitras.
Green Bay outplayed Notre Dame in the second half
outshooting the Fighting Irish 14-9 and 4-2 on corner kicks, "they really put
their heart into the game. I was very impressed with their second half
performance and they should all be very proud of the way they played," said
Notre Dame Head coach Bobby Clark.
"I was not surprised by Green Bay's performance, they
definitely lived up to what I thought they were," added Clark. "It's a credit
to Notre Dame's defense that they limited our opportunities to score," said
Poitras.
Notre Dame advances to the second round in the tournament to
play at Northwestern (10-4-4) at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
The Phoenix finished its historic season with a 14-3-3
record and afterwards was addressed in the locker room by legendary coach Aldo
Santaga, "Just because we didn't make goals doesn't mean we're a bad team. You
should walk with your heads held high and be proud," added Santaga.
The Green Bay men's soccer season may be over for 2009 but
from Aldo Santaga to Tom Poitras, the Phoenix drought in the NCAA tournament is
also over; at least for this season, "in Green Bay we don't give up; as long as
we keep playing with heart we'll be successful," said senior Francois Basty (Beauzelle, France).
"The biggest thing is we need to be proud of what we
accomplished this year, that's something that will never be forgotten," said
Poitras.
---www.GreenBayPhoenix.com---