Aug. 24, 2009

Box Score

EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern's men's soccer team was unable to find the back of the net Monday evening as it was edged by Notre Dame 1-0 in an exhibition match at Alumni Field. The matchup was a showdown of two teams ranked in the top 15 of the preseason rankings.

NU is ranked No. 9 in the NSCAA preseason poll, while Notre Dame is No. 12.

The contest was a rematch of a 2008 NCAA Tournament second-round contest won by the Wildcats 2-1 on the Fighting Irish's home field. However, this time Northwestern was unable to rally back.

The hosts tallied the lone goal of the match at the 22:54 mark as Steven Perry scored off an assist from Josh Thiermann. NU was playing its second consecutive preseason match without the services of starting goalkeeper Misha Rosenthal who was a second-team All-Big Ten selection each of the past two seasons.

Drew Kotler, who played the first 63:28 in goal for the Wildcats, recorded five saves before giving way to Jonathan Harris. Notre Dame finished the match with a 13-8 edge in shots.

Northwestern had a pair of opportunities to tie the match in the final minutes, but Eamon O'Neill had a shot go wide and Piero Bellizzi had another sail high.

The Wildcats conclude their exhibition season Friday when they face off against UIC in Fort Wayne, Ind. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Central time.