After Friday night’s game, it is clear that the Horizon League will pose a difficult, but balanced conference schedule for the Oakland Golden Grizzlies soccer squad. In their first Horizon League match, Oakland (0-1-2) played Valparaiso (0-0-3) to a 1-1 draw.
Oakland’s first Horizon League match ended in a 1-1 draw with Valparaiso (photo by Brian Quintos, 2013).
“I thought we played well,” said Oakland Head Coach Eric Pogue. “I’m disappointed to come away with a tie. I thought we had quite a bit of the play but Valparaiso is a strong defensive team. We had a hard time getting in behind them. I thought we played well enough to get to win but at the end of the day, we didn’t create enough opportunities.”
Matt Rickard saved the Golden Grizzlies from a loss, scoring off a header with the assist from Jacob VanderLaan at the 89′. The goal was Rickard’s first of the season as he sent off five shots with two on goal.
“I thought Rickard did a good job up top. He got a lot of balls in the game,” Pogue said. “Shawn Lewis came up with a big save at the end which kept us in the game and he didn’t really have a ton to do so that was tough but I think overall it was a good team performance as opposed to individuals who stood out. I think it’s just two tough teams battling it out. I think it’s a sign of things to come.”
“It felt great to get us back in the game,” Rickard said. “It was a great ball in from Jake and I just managed to get some head on the ball. Just a tiny flick.”
The Grizzlies thought they had scored minutes earlier, but officials called a hand ball violation.
Charles Barden struck first for Valparaiso, scoring at the 59′ to give his team a 1-0 advantage over Oakland.
Valparaiso and Oakland haven’t played each other in men’s soccer since before 2007, when Valparaiso left the Mid-Continental Conference, the precursor to the Summit League.
Pogue said it is great to have Valparaiso as a rival again.
“They’re a tough team to beat and it was great to get them back as a rival,” Pogue said. “We’ve had some great match ups with them over the years and to reestablish that rivalry is exciting.”
Valparaiso’s head coach, Mike Avery, said that Oakland entering the Horizon League will be nothing but a positive all around.
“We knew they were going to be a good program,” Avery said. “We knew that they were going to be a great addition. They got a great field and a good atmosphere to play a game in.”
Oakland held the advantage offensively through much of the game. After the game officially ended, Oakland had outshot Valparaiso 14-5 with a 4-3 advantage in shots on goal.
The Golden Grizzlies will play Sunday at home against Oregon State as they look to earn their first win of the season. Their next Horizon League match will be Sept. 28 at Cleveland State.
“I think the Horizon League, from top to bottom, is going to be an even balanced league,” Pogue said. “Any game that we play could be a win, a loss or a draw. I think they’re all going to be tightly contested and there’s no easy games in the Horizon League.”
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