Photo by James Durrant
PEORIA, Ill.—After notching two goals Friday, Skyler Milne scored the only goal of the night for the Utah Valley University men’s soccer team in a 1-0 win over the Bradley Braves. The Wolverines dominated the Braves with 10 shots and five corner kicks, compared to five shots and no corner kick opportunities.
Milne attacked the Braves’ (1-2-1) goal in the 25th minute with a 1-on-1 opportunity, but shot the ball straight at goalkeeper Logan Ketterer. The shot deflected away from the goal out of bounds in favor of UVU (3-0-0).
After the Braves cleared the ball to the other end of the pitch, Connor Salmon flipped the field again with a through ball that led Milne to the top of the box. Milne shot from 15 yards and skipped the ball by Ketterer to the back, left corner of the net in the 26th minute.
UVU dominated the second half by winning four corner kicks and firing five shots. Aaron Meyer attempted to shut the door on the Braves in the 82nd minute with a shot near the top of the goal from distance, but Ketterer tipped the ball over the crossbar to keep the Wolverines’ lead at 1-0.
In addition to the offensive dominance, UVU prevented BU from taking a shot during the final 57 minutes. Goalkeeper Elliott Rubio was aggressive in his box and attacked any attempt within his reach before a scoring attempt could be made by the Braves.
The Braves made a final push to equalize in the final minute, but strong team defense by UVU sent a final attempt back to the opposite end of the pitch and out of bounds as time expired.
The Wolverines are on the road again next weekend to play in the Northern Illinois Tournament with the first match coming Friday, Sept. 9, against Loyola Chicago at 3 p.m. MT in DeKalb, Ill.
