Nashville, Tenn. - Ninth-ranked Saint Louis University fell to James Madison 2-1 tonight at Vanderbilt's Puma Classic. The Billikens lost their second in a row to fall to 2-2-0.
"James Madison played a tough, physical, hard-nosed game, and we didn't adjust well to that or their traps in the first half," Billikens head coach Bob Warming said. "We got it going in the second half, but didn't create enough chances in our attacking third. Mike Hill, Joe Hammes, Jack Jewsbury and Jason Cole all were outstanding for us, but we needed more than those four playing well to win this one."
Although Saint Louis had the territorial edge early, JMU got on the board on its first shot of the game at 10:42. After a Billiken giveaway in the midfield, Dukes forward Brandon Wright put fellow forward Atle Rognerud through on Billiken keeper John Politis. Rognerud found the right corner from 12 yards.
The Dukes threatened to make it a two goal margin in the 24th minute when defender Reggie Rivers ripped a 30-yard drive off the cross bar. JMU out-shot the Bills 6-to-5 in the first half. The Billikens' attack was slowed when midfielder Brad Davis left the game in the 32nd minute with an injury.
Saint Louis took command in the second half and had a wide edge in possession time despite the shots being even at four. The Dukes didn't register their first shot of the second half until the 79th minute. Despite the territorial advantage, the Billikens had a difficult time creating scoring opportunities against a resilient Dukes defense.
With Saint Louis pushing up, JMU's Wright had a break-away after SLU sweeper Marty Tappel fell down, but Politis stoned Wright from 18 yards. However, Dukes midfielder David Wood chipped Politis from 30 yards to create a 2-0 advantage at 86:59.
The Billikens cut the lead in half on freshman first career goal at 88:54. Making a run down the left side, Pusateri took pass and drilled a 25-yard strike to the upper right corner.
JMU out-shot the Bills 10-9, but Saint Louis had the edge in corners 4-0. Dukes keeper Josh Kovolenko had to make only one save for the victory, while Politis made four saves in accepting his first loss of the year.
The Billikens dropped to 2-2-0, while JMU is 4-0-1. Saint Louis faces Cornell at noon on Sunday.
JMU 2, SAINT LOUIS 1,
JMU 10:42 Alte Rognerud 12 yds from Brandon Wright
JMU 86:59 David Wood 30-yd chip unassisted
SLU 88:54 Andy Pusateri 25-yds from David Beck
Shots: SLU-9, JMU-10
Corners: SLU-4, JMU-0
Saves: SLU-4 (Politis-3, Team-1), JMU-1 (Kovolenko)
Fouls: SLU-13, JMU-12
Att: 200
