Men’s Soccer Draws in Road Friendly Against Chicago Fire
March 25, 2017 | Men's Soccer
Cardinals narrowly missed on second half chances while standing strong in defense to clinch shutout
CHICAGO - The University of Louisville men's soccer team continued its spring exhibition slate with a scoreless draw against the Chicago Fire in a closed friendly match on Saturday at Toyota Park.
On a cool, rainy afternoon in Chicago, the Cardinals gained a professional experience as the Fire started and played first team members of the club during a break in the MLS schedule. Louisville players worked out of the main locker room and competed on the primary pitch at Toyota Park while also facing former teammates and UofL men's soccer alumni Daniel Johnson and Stefan Cleveland, who were selected by the Fire in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft.
"Playing a professional team is great. It exposes us to them, so the Fire coaches get to see our guys and assess some of the potential," said Louisville head coach Ken Lolla. "For us, seeing the level of play and the speed of play encourages us to be better and aspire to achieve more."
Saturday's result was the second straight scoreless draw for the Cardinals after opening the spring with a draw against Indy Eleven on March 10. Louisville's defensive shape and collective effort against the Fire played a key role in finishing with a clean sheet. The Cardinals were organized and aggressive, while consistently limiting the Chicago attack.
"Being a good defensive unit is something that we've focused on all spring, so getting a shutout today was huge," said Lolla. "We've had two games against professional teams and we haven't conceded a goal. On the other side of it, the Fire did a really good job of repressing and winning the ball back. I would have preferred that we had more possession, but in the end I thought it was a really good result for us and a great learning experience."
Through the first half, Chicago controlled the majority of the possession and was able to create several dangerous chances. Louisville freshman goalkeeper Will Meyer came up with several huge saves in the match to keep the Fire off the scoreboard. The Cardinals also withstood a series of late attacks from Chicago, including several set pieces, to earn the shutout.
Louisville had a great chance of its own in the 56th minute when Tim Kubel's free kick found Tate Schmitt, who narrowly missed on a header wide of the target. In the 83rd minute, Mohamed Thiaw turned at midfield and attempted to chip past the Chicago goalkeeper, who was off his line but pedaled back to make the save.
Up next, the Cardinals will continue their spring at home against Wisconsin on Saturday at 7 p.m., before closing the home schedule against Xavier on Friday, April 7 at 7 p.m. Louisville will conclude the spring at Lindsey Wilson College on Friday, April 14 at 7 p.m.
Fans can follow Louisville men's soccer on Twitter (@UofLmenssoccer) at http://twitter.com/uoflmenssoccer and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/UofLmenssoccer.
