Denver men’s soccer team earned its first West Coast Conference victory last night with a 2-1 win over Loyola Marymount University (LMU) at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium.  It was Camp Reunion night so a good crowd of over 1,200 had  many youth in attendance.

“It was a big night for us” said Denver head coach Jamie Franks.  “It wasn’t our best performance at all but a lot of our chances were their turnovers.  We’ve had a great three weeks and re-grouped ourselves.”  added Franks.

DU got off to a slow start with LMU controlling the ball in the first few minutes.  The Lions played a quick pace game and caused problems for the Pioneers in the first half.  It was until until 32′ that Denver got its first shot on goal and at 39′ junior defender Grant Lund put DU ahead 1-0 with a header.  LMU led 5-2 with shots in the first half.

To start the second half, LMU was awarded a penalty kick after a foul by Lund in the 48th minute.  The Lions easily put a point on the board and the score was 1-1.  Denver played a better second period and had a 10-6 advantage with shots.  LMU drew a red card at 69′ and that helped DU’s Bryce Willoughby (5th year forward) place a header in the goal at 72′. Only four minutes later Lund almost had a second goal but the Pios were called offside.  LMU received another red card at 86′ and had 14 fouls in the game to 10 for DU.

Junior forward Keegan Kelly and fifth year forward Kyle McGowan are still missing from the lineup after being injured in the Creighton game.  These two players are major contributors to Denver’s scoring opportunities and are missed.

DU (2-6-1) returns for another home match next weekend, Saturday October 10, for a 3 pm MT kickoff against San Francisco.