Northwestern
Loyola
Wildcats Win Second Straight With 2-0 Shutout Over Loyola
10/8/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
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Oct. 8, 2003
EVANSTON, Ill. - For a little over 51 minutes, the Northwestern versus Loyola match looked as though it was going to be like the previous five matches at the Leonard B. Thomas Sports Complex-- all of which went to overtime.
However, the Wildcats exploded for two second half-goals to give them their second straight win and improve their record to 5-3-4 overall.
NU got on the board when freshman Gerardo Alvarez crossed a ball towards the net that skipped off the foot of Adam Sirois directly to Alexander Renzi who put it in the back of the net at 51:23.
That was all the 'Cats needed as the defense completely shut down the Loyola attack.
Assistant coach Erik Ronning was at the reins for the third consecutive match while head coach Tim Lenahan is away dealing with the death of his mother. Ronning was extremely pleased with the effort the 'Cats put forth on the defensive end.
"We didn't give them too many chances," Ronning said. "And the chances they did come up with weren't what you'd consider 'golden opportunities'."
"Our guys played extremely well defensively. Jaro Pylypczak, Jeremy Cook, Will Nicholas -- really neutralized their attack," Ronning added.
Sirois sealed the deal for the Wildcats when he scored an unassisted goal at 86:56 to give NU a 2-0 lead.
Northwestern goalkeeper Brian Heckenbach tallied seven saves en route to his second career shutout.
After starting the season 0-2-2, the Wildcats are now 5-1-1 in their last five matches.
NU faces perennial powerhouse Indiana on Sunday in what will be legendary head coach Jerry Yeagley's final trip to Evanston. Yeagley, who has led IU to five national championships, is retiring at the conclusion of the season after 31 seasons with the Hoosiers.
The match is the second half to a Northwestern soccer double-header. The women's team takes on Ohio State at 12:30 and the men do battle with the Hoosiers at 3:00.
