COLUMBUS, Ohio - McKendree University men's soccer capitalized early on an opportunity but failed to hold back an aggressive Ashland attack, playing the Eagles to a draw on Friday afternoon. McKendree will look to put a mark in the win column on Sunday as they play they Columbus host, Ohio Dominican. 

The Bearcats had trouble with igniting the offense early on against a stingy Eagles back line with only three total shots in the first half but efficiency was the name of the game. McKendree earned a free kick which followed a foul by Ashland, putting freshman midfielder Philipp Schmidt (Heidelberg, Germany) just outside the 18 yard box for the strike. Schmidt blasted the free kick to the upper left 90, putting the Bearcats up 1-0 over the Eagles in the 31st minute of action. The goal by Schmidt marked the freshman's first ever collegiate score.

The Ashland attack pushed the Bearcat defense, especially in the second half, but the Eagles were unable to find the net until late in the game. The game-tying goal for the Eagles came in the 71st minute following a pair of yellow cards, one on Ashland forward Kieran Paterson and the other on McKendree goalkeeper Alvaro Cortazar, which led to an Ashland penalty kick. The penalty kick was taken by Paterson, who rocketed it past Cortazar, evening the match at one goal a piece.

The final 19 minutes of regulation led to only three additional shots between the two teams and led to overtime. In the two ten-minute overtime periods, only two shots were recorded, both by the Eagles. Ashland out-shot McKendree 14-6 over the full 110 minutes of action with seven on frame compared to the Bearcats' four on frame shots. The Bearcats and Eagles played a gritty neck-and-neck contest with a constant barrage of defense by the back line of both teams.

NOTES: 
Freshman midfielder Philipp Schmidt collected his first career goal via a lengthy free kick to the upper left corner of the goal, putting the Bearcats up 1-0 in the 31st minute. The match was also Schmidt's first collegiate action in the regular season. 

Goalkeeper Alvaro Cortazar saved six shots from the Ashland attack, tying his career high at McKendree. He also save six against Illinois Springfield on 03/05/2021, another match that ended in a tie following double overtime. 

UP NEXT:
McKendree men's soccer remains in Columbus through Sunday for its second match of the year, playing Ohio Dominican at noon (1 PM ET) on September 5. 


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