Bradley (4-7-2, 1-4 MVC) lost to Drake (7-3-3, 3-0-2 MVC) on Saturday in a 2-1 heartbreaker at Shea Stadium on the Braves’ senior day.
It was a beautiful fall afternoon, and Bradley honored 11 of its seniors on its final conference home game of the season. The Braves led for most of the game, but the Bulldogs found their offense in the final 10 minutes to remain undefeated in conference play.
Bradley defended the ball well for most of the afternoon and used it to shut out the Bulldogs in the first half.
“They were really strong in the beginning parts of the game, and a lot of that has to do with our ability to get forward too,” head coach Tim Regan said. “The more you can get forward, the less you defend.”
Bradley got on the scoreboard first at the nine-minute mark on a lower left goal by sophomore forward Ian Ferguson, his second goal of the season. This was Bradley’s only shot of the whole first half.
“You know, it was just right there,” Ferguson said. “I ran towards [the ball]. I got touch on it, kind of one-on-one in the box and just passed it in the corner.”
Ferguson and the Braves were set up by a free kick after a Drake foul. Bradley had the numbers advantage near the box, which allowed Ferguson to weave in and out of the defense and find the back of the net with an unassisted goal.
The Braves led at the halftime break 1-0, and during the second half picked up right where the first half left off. The Bulldogs continued to be aggressive, but could not find the net. Drake missed their first eight shots before junior forward Eloge Iradunkunda scored in the 82nd minute after a corner kick.
Senior captain Charlie Dickerson picked up a yellow card on a tackle attempt, which set up a free kick for Drake’s Jackson Kirsch just outside the box. Bradley’s goalkeeper, junior Drew Berry, made a save by tipping the ball high, which resulted in the ball sailing over the net. The Braves weren’t as fortunate on the following play by Iradunkunda.
Drake scored the winning goal with just three minutes remaining from sophomore midfielder Dalton Visconti. Sophomore midfielder Barrett Kitts and junior defender Eskil Gjerde assisted him.
“[Drake] was able to push the game in a really effective way,” Regan said. “We sustained it pretty well [at the beginning]. Unfortunately not well enough, and it can see [with] the two late goals.”
Dickerson was one of the 11 seniors honored pregame and knew that it was one of the last two chances he would have to play at Shea Stadium with his teammates.
“It’s a nice feeling to know that we can enjoy those times,” Dickerson said. “And, unfortunately, we didn’t come away with the result that we wanted today. But there were moments where, as a team, we looked really good.”
The Braves continue their season on Oct. 26 to face Western Michigan in the Broncos’ home city of Kalamazoo.
