MOUNT VERNON, Ohio– The Madonna University men's soccer team wrapped up their five-game season-opening road trip with a second straight shutout as Marlon Freitas buried a penalty kick in the 70th minute to send the Crusaders to 3-2 with a 1-0 win over Mt. Vernon Nazarene University on Wednesday night.

HOW IT HAPPENED: Madonna (3-2-0) 1, Mt. Vernon Nazarene (4-2-0) 0

• First Half

  • The Crusaders dominated the opening 45 minutes of the physical contest as they outshot the Cougars 8-4, but the home team put three shots on frame to MU's two.

• Second Half

  • After three cards in the first half, seven more were dolled out in the second half, including a second yellow to Crusaders forward, Yuri Farkas. After the second card, MU played the final 26:35 a man down and still came away with the win.

  • Both teams attempted three shots in the final 45 minutes, but MU made the most of their chances. In the 70th minute, Freitas converted on a penalty kick for the game-winner.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Madonna attempted 11 shots with four on frame while Mt. Vernon tallied seven shots, but also put four on goal

• The match featured 45 fouls and five corner kicks with the home team holding a 3-2 edge in set pieces

• Farkas led MU with six shots, two on goal, while Freitas and Ludvick Asigo each attempted two shots while Issei Ito added the final attempt and was on frame

• Joe Smith made several stellar saves in net for MU to preserve a second straight clean sheet with four saves in 90 minutes

MILESTONES TO WATCH

• The men's soccer program is five wins away from 300 in the teams 25th season (1994-2018)

UP NEXT

• Madonna hosts University of Saint Francis (Ind.) for their 2018 home opener on Saturday, Sept. 15 at the Madonna Athletics Complex with kickoff slated for 2 p.m.

• Live coverage will be available on the Madonna Athletics Network at www.mucrusaders.com

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