Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Valpo mounted a furious comeback from a 4-0 hole on a windy afternoon in Evanston, Ill. but came up short, dropping a 4-2 decision to Northwestern Wednesday.

Playing into the wind in the first half, the Brown and Gold were out-shot 11-1 by the Wildcats, ranked seventh in the NSCAA's Great Lakes Region, and fell behind 2-0 at the intermission. In the second half, it was more of the same for a short while, with Northwestern scoring twice by the 75 minute mark to go up four goals.

But Valpo bounced back, out-shooting Northwestern 14-6 in the second half and getting on the board for the first time in the 81st minute. After a scramble in front of the net, sophomore Andrew Stewart (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Stevenson) scored for the first time in his career to make it 4-1.

Seven minutes later, another unlikely source provided a goal as senior Jeremy Stacy (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central) bent a ball into the corner of the net. Stacy's goal was his second of the season, but only the third of his 60-plus match career.

Geoff Fallon and David Roth each had a goal and an assist for the Wildcats (9-3-0), who matched their win total from 2005 with the victory. Will Briley made five saves for the win.

Valpo (6-5-0) will return to the pitch Sunday afternoon for another non-conference match against IPFW. Kickoff for the Crusaders and Mastodons in Fort Wayne, Ind. is set for 12:00 p.m.

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