PHOTOS and GAME SUMMARY: VCU Gives up Lead Twice Settle for a Draw

Official VCU Game Summary

Score: VCU 2, Loyola Chicago 2
Location: Richmond, Va. (Sports Backers Stadium)
Records: VCU 0-5-5 (0-0-3 Atlantic 10), Loyola Chicago 5-2-3 (1-2-1 Atlantic 10)

The short story: The Rams and Ramblers exchanged goals throughout the match, ultimately ending up in a 2-2 deadlock when the final whistle blew.

QUICK FACTS

• Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper John Ermini had a busy night in net, collecting eight saves.
• The Rams shot the ball nine times, five of which were on goal.
• Sophomore midfielder Philip Klomp and freshman forward Jean-Claude Bile each netted their second goals of the 2022 campaign.  For Klomp, it is the third goal of his college career.
• It was a clean game by both sides, with no yellow or red cards.
• This was the first ever match between VCU and Loyola Chicago, the newest member of the A-10 Conference.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a back-and-forth start, the Black and Gold broke through first with a long-range goal by Bile in the 37^th minute, off of a nifty assist from sophomore midfielder Damian Gallegos.
• It looked as if the Rams would take a lead into halftime, but Loyola Chicago responded with a Ben Bischof goal in the final minute of the opening half.
• Coming out of the locker room, the Rams quickly grabbed the lead back. In the 46^th minute, freshman midfielder Moussa Ndiaye’s shot banged off the right post, but Klomp was in the right place at the right time to deposit the rebound in the back of the net.
• As the minutes ticked away, the Ramblers ramped up their attack, shooting the ball 22 times in the second half.  Loyola Chicago’s aggressive offense culminated in an 87^th minute goal off the head of Oscar Dueso.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH DAVE GIFFARD

“This is the first time that we’ve been ahead twice, and both times that we went ahead we became too passive and felt like we needed to just kill out the game. It’s a new lesson to learn. It hasn’t been a situation that we’ve been in yet, and after scoring two good goals, we needed to kind of put our foot to the pedal and keep it going and be more aggressive. A difficult lesson to learn, but one that has to be learned. These are not things that we just intrinsically know. Everything’s new for us. Good job against another top-25 type team to go ahead twice, but then honestly just too passive. In the end, I didn’t think the ball crossed the line, but we have the benefit of video replay that the referees do not.”

UP NEXT

The Rams hit the road for their next three contests, starting with an A-10 showdown at Davidson College this Saturday, Oct. 8.  The match versus the Wildcats begins at 7 p.m.