Red Devils Make Program History With 2-1 Win Over Webster
EUREKA – The Eureka men's soccer team took down Webster for the first time in program history on Friday night with an ecstatic, 2-1 victory that came down to the final seconds.
With 35 seconds left in the match, Jacob Russow (Streator, Ill./Streator/Lincoln) received the ball in the midfield, turned and played it outside to Khalil Alleyne (Diego Martin, Trinidad/Fatima College/Lincoln), who took it forward and passed it into the box to Raphael Mungu (Bloomington, Ill./Normal).
The sophomore slipped past his man and sent it into the back of the net with 23 seconds remaining, setting off a wild Red Devil celebration that was 15 years in the making.
"That's the way to finish a game," EC coach Ryan Woodside told his team when it was all over. "They're one of the best teams in the conference.
"It's a really good, hard-fought win," he added later.
In 18 prior contests against Webster, the Red Devils had never won or never tied.
Last year, the Gorloks nipped the maroon and gold with a 1-0 victory after breaking the scoreless tie in the final two minutes after a couple of mishaps in the back. The ghostly memory has hung with the Red Devils ever since. On Friday, they finally got to lay it to rest.
"I felt like I had to score today because last game (against Webster), the shot came off me, and I was feeling so bad because we lost because of me," Mungu said. "But today, I feel so good after that. I have no words; I have no voice. I was screaming."
"We lost last year and we didn't want a repeat of that," Alleyne said. "We knew what we had to do to overcome that. We did what we had to do and got the win, and to me, that's what's most important."
The Red Devils caught the Gorloks off guard with an early goal. Freshman Michael DeCarlo (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) put the home team on the board after a corner kick in the seventh minute. Isaac Noriega (Chicago, Ill./Muchin College Prep/Lincoln) played an in-swinger into the six-yard box and the keeper punched it out. DeCarlo reacted quickly and met it with a side volley into the back of the net that didn't give the keeper a chance.
The Red Devils proceeded to play high-energy, high-intensity soccer for the rest of the half. Webster had its share of opportunities, but the back line stood strong and came away unscathed.
"The back line really kept us together," Woodside said. "We have some really good leaders on the team. Isaac had a really notable performance – vocal senior in the back. Really kept us in it, really kept our spirits up, along with Khalil continuing to push forward and having a really high work rate.
Also providing high work rates in different ways were DeCarlo in the midfield and attacking third and Jake Edmondson (Monticello, Ill./Monticello) at left wingback. The freshman pushed the pace and kept the pressure on his opponents. The junior captain locked up Webster on the ball and passed with precision to set up teammates.
Eureka maintained the upper hand in the second half until Carlos Llamas delivered the equalizer in the 72nd minute. Despite dangerous opportunities for both sides, it stayed knotted until Mungu's final finish of the night.
Eureka freshman goalkeeper Brecken Cady (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) made four saves while turning in an assertive performance in the net, always choosing the right moments to come out and communicating with confidence.
"This year, we stuck to the game plan to the end," Woodside said. "The boys were really disciplined. It's a really good team win. Everybody that got minutes worked really hard – even the guys that didn't get minutes had a ton of energy on the bench."
The Red Devils are now 4-4-3 on the season and 2-0-1 in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. It's the team's first time being unbeaten through three conference games in program history.
They will next host Fontbonne at McKinzie Field on Wednesday at 5 p.m. The last time the Griffins came to town last season, the Red Devils earned their first-ever win against them in dramatic fashion, too.
"First win in program history against Webster, it's hard to put into words," Alleyne added. "It feels great, but we know this is just the beginning of a lot of good things to come."
