Midway through the first half, Bradley goalkeeper Drew Berry watched from his post as DePaul forward Joon Han attacked the Braves’ defense.
The striker knifed through a sea of red and white as he crossed midfield and fired a shot 30 yards away from the goal.
“As I’m set for the shot, I’m thinking that he’s either going to my left or down the middle,” Berry said.
Berry was wrong. Han fired right.
Berry reacted once he realized his mistake, lunging right to make a save, as he’d done twice already in Bradley’s (2-4-5, 0-2-1 MVC) home match against DePaul (2-4-6, 0-2-1 MVC).
However, he was a hair late, and the ball found itself in the back of the net, giving the Blue Demons a 1-0 lead.
After the goal, the fifth-year goalkeeper tried to regroup mentally.
He’d been here before–plenty of times, and as a goalie, you have to have the memory of a goldfish.
But Berry didn’t have much time to resettle.
Six minutes later, he’d be tested again when a clearance kick landed in the possession of DePaul forward Jordan Flagette. Flagette had a clear shot at a goal–and he took it.
Again, Berry lunged to stop the goal, but again, he was unsuccessful. The Braves now trailed 2-0, and the pressure was on.
“It was just a tough play,” Berry said. “Guy uses his body to get the bouncing ball, and then it was on one. He finished it really well. Two tough goals and two sloppy moments from all of us put us down two scores pretty early. After the second goal, I was nervous. Nervous to give up a lot more.”
Stop the bleeding
As the Blue Demons celebrated, the Braves huddled together to figure out how to stop the onslaught. In under 30 minutes, DePaul produced eight shots compared to the Braves’ one.
Something had to change.
“The huddle is just frustration to be honest,” Berry said. “Coming off a really difficult loss Saturday and then coming out down 2-0 in the first twenty minutes was frustrating. We were trying to get everyone motivated.”
“We actually switched formations,” Berry continued. “We were in a 3-5-2 and ended up switching to a 4-4-2. That helped us contain more possession of the ball.”
After the goal, Bradley started to attack and threaten DePaul’s backline. The Braves jockeyed for possession for 15 minutes before freshman forward Connor Chester whipped a shot to the right side of the box for Bradley’s first score.
“It was awesome,” Chester said about his second career goal. “In a time that our team needed some positivity and energy, I was able to step forward and put it there for the team.”
The Braves used the momentum from the goal to keep the Blue Demons at bay, but they went into halftime still down 2-1.
“The first one’s really important, because going into halftime 2-0 is a very deflating feeling,” head coach Tim Regan said. “To get the goal back brings the spirit into the team, where they can come out of halftime and know that one goal makes us even. That was a big moment.”
Bradley had a 15-minute break at half-time, but only used five to discuss adjustments before returning to the pitch to warm up.
“Honestly, not much needed to be said,” Chester said. “We all knew that the first half was not good enough. We all believed that we could come out and get a result. I think everyone came out and showed fight and passion.”
Third time’s a charm
The Braves played with more passion and fought more in the second half. They did a much better job controlling possession and limiting the Blue Demons’ shots. Bradley held their opponents to five shots in the second half compared to 12 in the first.
The increased time with possession allowed the Braves forwards to pressure DePaul, and they generated shots early in the half, which put their opponents on their back feet.
Bradley’s increased effort paid off in the 55th minute when Chester streaked down the right side of the field, shook a defender and fired a shot to the left side of the net.
The goal was Chester’s second of the night and his third of what is becoming a promising collegiate career.
“It was unbelievable,” Chester said. “The season is full of highs and lows and today was definitely the highest moment of my college career. I was just happy that I could get us a point for the team.”
The Braves celebrated after Chester’s goal, overjoyed they’d made the improbable comeback, but there was still a lot of game to play.
Both teams battled over the next 35 minutes to gain the upper hand. It was an extremely taxing affair, accumulating 12 fouls within the span. Each team fired four shots, but neither could get the upper hand.
The Blue Demons’ best opportunity to escape with a win came in the 80th minute when forward Tyson Amoo-Mensah fired a straight-on shot close to the goalie box.
Berry again reached out to stop the goal, but this time, he deflected the ball towards a teammate, keeping the score tied at two.
“He’s been here four years and that’s not common these days in college sports,” Regan said. “He’s grown each year. One of his biggest areas is his ability to handle conceding a goal and keep his composure, and knowing he still has the talent to make the next play. He proved it tonight with that late save. The goal was pretty open. To make that save and not over-commit and all the little goalkeeper details was really good.”
Bradley’s best chance at a goal came at 86:50, when junior forward Mitch Coughlon attempted a header towards the left side of the box. Unfortunately for Bradley, it was stopped, and the game ended in a draw.
Although the Braves did not win, they displayed the resiliency needed to compete in the Missouri Valley Conference and can build on their second-half success going forward.
“There’s a lot of pride in this group,” Regan said. “There are some bad moments in games or a bad play here and there, but overall they’re going to continue to push and stay committed to the effort and what it takes to win some of these games. None of them is easy. Tonight was really difficult. They showed their quality in their efforts to come back.”
Bradley will be back in action Friday on the road against Bowling Green at 6 p.m.
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