Oct. 21, 2007
Box Score
ST. LOUIS - No. 12 Saint Louis got two first-half goals and held off a charging Rhode Island Rams team late in a 3-1 victory in Atlantic 10 Conference men's soccer action at Robert R. Hermann Stadium on Sunday. Sophomore forward Scott Wisniewski scored a goal and assisted on another, while freshman Jimmy Holmes also tallied for the Bills.
"Rhode Island is a team that is very mature and very composed, so that makes this a good result for us," Billiken head coach Scott Wisniewski had a great game, and Dado Hamzagic like normal gave us a good amount of spark on offense. I was disappointed with our offense on Friday, but I'm happy today. The more consistent we are, the better our team will be."
Wisniewski put the Bills on top 1-0 in the 25th minute when he pounced on a loose ball and ripped a cannon from 25 yards. The play started when junior forward Dado Hamzagic split two URI defenders in search of a through ball. A URI back managed to intercept the pass, but the Rams were unable to take possession. With the ball loose at the top of the box, Wisniewski let go a shot that tucked just under the crossbar for his third tally of the season.
With under five minutes left in the half, Saint Louis got the eventual game winner when Bellomy struck with 4:11 left in the first period. The play started with a nice play by junior midfielder Kyle Patterson to gain possession. He then ran up the right flank and sent a cross destined for the head of senior Andrew Reeder. Reeder deflected the pass, and Bellomy collected the loose ball and fired a shot that was stopped by URI keeper Chris Pennock. However, Bellomy kept with the play and buried his own rebound for his second goal of the year.
The Billikens, who benefited from a strong southerly breeze (right-to-left) in the first half, had to go against it in the second. Rhode Island struck in the 65th minute when Kedan Crosby tallied to move the Rams to within one. DanLeigh Borman ran up the left flank and sent a pass to Lukacz Tumicz. The A-10's leading scorer ripped a shot that was stopped by SLU keeper Ross Kaufman, but the rebound landed right at Crosby's feet who one-touched the ball into the open net.
With Rhody on the attack late in the match, Holmes scored a crucial insurance goal to put the game out of the Rams' reach. In the 79th minute, he caught a Wisniewski through ball and ran through the middle of the field while holding off a defender. Once in the penalty area, he side-stepped a charging Pennock and ran toward the left post before scoring into the open net.
Rhode Island (4-7-2, 2-1-1 A-10) out-shot the Billikens (7-2-3, 3-1-0 A-10) 17-10, but SLU held an 8-4 advantage on corner kicks. Kaufman was strong in goal, posting a season-high seven saves. The 17 URI shots is tied for the most against the Billikens this season.
The Billikens, who benefited today from a Massachusetts loss to reclaim a top spot in the A-10 standings, resume league play next Friday when they travel to face Richmond at 6:30 p.m. (CT).
