St. Louis - Senior defender Jason Cole scored with nine seconds remaining and No. 24 Saint Louis rallied past SMS 2-1 tonight in the opening night of the Billikens' Nike Classic before a crowd of 3,051 at Robert R. Hermann Stadium. The victory snapped the Billikens' three-game winless streak to start the season.
"I'm just happy for our guys that all their hard work and patience paid off tonight with a win," head coach Dan Donigan said. "Everyone did their part tonight, and it was nice to break the ice. We're all relieved and feel as if a big burden has been lifted."
Saint Louis controlled play in the first half and out-shot the Bears 7-2 while enjoying a 4-0 advantage on corner kicks. The Bills' best chances came in the 27th minute when SMS keeper Matt Pickens picked up Cole's 18-yarder through traffic and in the 33rd minute when SLU forward Jack Jewsbury's chance on a through ball was swallowed up by Pickens.
However, SMS converted its best chance of the half in the 42nd minute. Forward Jamal Sutton converted a sliding tap-in off a centering pass from fellow forward Jed Hohlbein.
The Billikens continued to dominate play and forced SMS to take fouls outside its penalty area. That finally paid dividends for SLU in the 76th minute when junior defender Kevin Wickart tied the match with his first career goal as a Billiken. Off a deadball, the Wake Forest transfer hammered a 25-yard shot that deflected off a Bears defender and eluded Pickens' grasp.
As Saint Louis sought to increase the pressure, Cole was moved from his usual spot in the back to capitalize on his speed against a tiring Bears defense. In the waning moments, freshman midfielder Danny Wynn sent a cross from the left flank into the SMS penalty area. The served caromed off a Bears defender, who failed to connect on his clearing attempt, and bounced directly to Cole. Charging to the right post, Cole drove it into the back netting from five yards at 89:51.
"Pushing Jason forward made a major impact on the game," Donigan said. "Not only did he look to take advantage of his speed and aggressiveness, but he also effected all 11 players on the field."
The Billikens out-shot the Bears 18-4 and had an 8-1 edge on corners. SLU keeper Martin Hutton, a Clemson transfer, had to make only one save to pick up his first career win as a Bill. Pickens made five stops for SMS.
The Billikens (1-2-1) face James Madison (4-1-0) at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday at Hermann Stadium, while SMS takes on UC Santa Barbara at noon. In the first game tonight, UC Santa Barbara topped JMU 3-1.
#24 SAINT LOUIS 2, SMS 1
SMS 41:07 Jamal Sutton tap-in from Jed Hohlbein
SLU 75:24 Kevin Wickart 25 yds unassisted
SLU 89:51 Jason Cole 5 yds unassisted
Shots: SLU-18 , SMS - 4 Corners: SLU- 8 , SMS - 1 Saves: SLU-1 (Hutton), SMS - 5 (Pickens) Fouls: SLU-16, SMS - 18 Att: 3,051
