ROCHESTER, Mich. – The Oakland Golden Grizzlies defeated the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons, 1-0, in a highly competitive game at home from the Oakland Soccer Field on Saturday, Oct. 12.
At the start of the match, there was a lot of back-and-forth action between the teams. Both the Golden Grizzlies and the Mastodons were able to push the ball deep into the other team's territory, but neither team could capitalize on their chances.
In the 15th minute, Oakland finally had a chance to take an early lead over the Mastodons. Jack Klomparens took the first shot of the afternoon, but the Purdue Fort Wayne defense blocked it. Malik Sylvester took a chance at a goal seconds later, but his shot missed the mark just high.
As the first half continued, neither the Golden Grizzlies nor the Mastodons could pull ahead until the very end of the first half.
With just three seconds left in the first, Luke Benford sent a flawless pass to Francesco Mazzei just outside of the box. With his mind set on a goal, Mazzei found the back of the net to give Oakland a lead heading into halftime.
Notably, Mazzei's goal was his second of the season, and Benford's assist was his first of the season.
At halftime, the Mastodons and the Golden Grizzlies were tied in shots taken with four a piece and corners, with both teams having two chances at a corner. However, Purdue Fort Wayne led Oakland in shots on goal (3-to-1).
The start of the second half saw the Golden Grizzlies have more control over the game than the Mastodons. Oakland took two shots through the first eight minutes of the second and had a corner. In comparison, Purdue Fort Wayne could get nothing going early.
In the 63rd minute, the Golden Grizzlies had a chance to extend their lead but came up just short of another goal. After a quick push into Mastodon territory, Milan Dajic collected a pass and sent a powerful shot that missed the goal by a few inches.
Throughout the rest of the second half, the Golden Grizzlies saw fewer chances at a second goal. Still, the Oakland defense, spearheaded by Sylvester and Alex Flowers, kept the Mastodons at bay for the rest of the match, lifting the Golden Grizzlies to a 1-0 win over Purdue Fort Wayne.
At the end of the game, Purdue Fort Wayne led Oakland in shots (12-to-10), shots on goal (5-to-3), and corners (7-to-3). Still, the Golden Grizzlies emerged victorious, improving their conference record to 2-1-2 and their overall record to 4-6-2.
Next, the Golden Grizzlies will look to continue momentum as they travel to Dayton, Ohio, to take on the Raiders from Wright State University on Saturday, Oct. 19. The game will kick off at 3 p.m. and be live-streamed on ESPN+.
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