Sept. 22, 2007

Box Score

PEORIA, Ill. - Junior forward Dado Hamzagic (St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville) scored a goal and assisted on another to lift the Billikens to a 2-0 victory over Bradley Saturday night at Shea Stadium. Sophomore midfielder Scott Wisniewski added the insurance marker for the Bills, while Ross Kaufman made a pair of saves for his second shutout of the season. The Billikens improve to 3-1-2 overall, while Bradley dips to 4-2-1.

"This is a great result on the road against a Bradley team that is disciplined and very well coached ," Billiken head coach Dan Donigan said. "We didn't have many opportunities to score in the first half, but our persistence paid off as our attack was able to penetrate Bradley's defense and create chances in the second. I was very happy with our defense tonight. Our back four was stellar, as was the play of Josh Aranda and Brandon Gasparovic in the middle."

While the Billikens controlled much of the possession in the first half, neither team was able to crack the scoreboard. Bradley, which received votes in last week's Soccer Times coaches' poll, matched SLU's two shots and one corner kick in the first stanza, but the teams headed into the lockeroom deadlocked at 0-0.

That remained the score until Hamzagic put the Billikens on top with a little more than 15 minutes remaining in regulation. After a Bradley giveaway, sophomore back Rob Viviano gained possession on the left flank and sent a cross to Hamzagic to the right side of the penalty area. Hamzagic juked a defender, then sent a shot into the lower-right corner for the game's first goal. The tally was Hamzagic's second of the season, which ties him with Kyle Patterson for the team lead.

A minute later, sophomore midfielder Scott Wisniewski put the Billikens up by two after burying his first goal of the year. Hamzagic broke in and let go a shot that rang off the post. However, Wisniewski was camped out in prime location and pounced on the rebound, sending a shot past BU keeper Mike Haynes for the 2-0 advantage.

The Billiken defense demonstrated a great all-around effort by limiting the Braves' offense to just four shots on the night, only two of which found the goal. Overall, SLU out-shot BU 9-4 and held a 4-1 advantage in corner kicks.

The Billikens return home to face Central Florida for Homecoming at Hermann Stadium next Saturday. Game time is slated for 7:30 p.m.