Box Score
UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. -- Notre Dame suffered its second loss of the season, as the Falcons fell to ranked Saginaw Valley State (Mich.), 3-2, on Friday.
The No. 13 (National Soccer Coaches Association of America) Cardinals broke a 2-2 tie in the 77th minute and went on to claim a victory in what was a key Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference battle in University Center, Mich. With the home victory, Saginaw Valley State (7-1-1, 4-1-1 GLIAC) bounces back from a 1-1 tie at Tiffin on Sunday, and the Cardinals remain unbeaten (6-0) at home this season. For Notre Dame (6-2, 4-2) the loss snaps a three-game winning streak, and it marks just NDC's third loss over the last two-and-a-half seasons (2010-present).
SVSU got on the board first on Friday with a Taylor Clarke goal in the 17th minute. The Cardinals didn't maintain their 1-0 lead for long, as
Erik Beattie answered with his sixth goal of the season in the 24th minute. The score would remain 1-1 through halftime.
At 51:52 Renan Trocolli scored his third of the year to give the Falcons a 2-1 advantage. But the Cardinals fought back to even the affair in the 59th minute and then take a 3-2 lead at the 76:11-mark. That goal -- the eventual game-winner -- was scored by Craig Neal, and put the ranked Cardinals in the driver's seat in GLIAC play. They finished the day with the best mark in the GLIAC North and with a better record than the top team in the South (NDC).
The Blue & White outshot the Cardinals, 14-13, over the 90-minute contest. NDC's shot total marks its lowest since firing just six shots in the team's Aug. 30 opener.
With the road loss Notre Dame is now 48-3 over the its last 51 matches, dating back to the beginning of the 2010 season. Friday's game marked NDC's first road loss since Oct. 17, 2009.
The Falcons will continue what is a busy weekend against quality soccer teams on Sunday when they travel to Ashland to take on the Eagles of Ashland University (3:30 p.m.). Ashland headed into the weekend with an overall mark of 5-1-1.
