Eureka Earns Scoreless Draw at Greenville

GREENVILLE, Ill. – The Eureka men's soccer team earned a hard-fought, scoreless draw at Greenville on Wednesday evening.

It was the Red Devils' second-ever tie with the Panthers and first since Oct. 25, 2016.

Led with poise by the team's back line of Isaac Noriega (Chicago, Ill./Muchin College Prep/Lincoln), Jake Edmondson (Monticello, Ill./Monticello) and Nico Pujals (Stokesdale, N.C./Northwest Guilliford/Pfeiffer), Coach Ryan Woodside's squad held the home team at bay for 90 minutes.

It was Noriega who denied one of the Panthers' best chances late. In the last five minutes of the game, the senior intercepted a dangerous cross close to the goal, taking it out of the air and clearing it away.

Sophomore goalkeeper Brayton Strawkas (Buffalo, Ill./Tri-City) made five saves in his first start of the season in net.

Though Greenville had more opportunities early on, the Red Devils stayed steady and were able to create their share of chances as well. The team recorded six corner kicks and put themselves in position to get on the board on several of them.

The Red Devils just never found a clear path to the back of the net. Greenville finished with 12 shots and six shots on goal, while Eureka notched nine shots and four shots on goal.

Troy Arries (Cape Town, South Africa/Wynberg) posted two of EC's shots on goal; Noriega, Edmondson and Daniel Jüeliger  (London, UK/Netherhall Secondary School/Lincoln) were responsible for the other three.

Through six league matches, the Red Devils (4-6-4) are now 2-2-2. They will next face Great Lakes Christian (4-5-2) in a non-conference matchup on the road on Friday at 4 p.m.