PEORIA, Ill.
? Bradley junior midfielder Graham Stockdale (Seattle, Wash./Roosevelt H.S.) netted his first goal of the season to give the Braves an early lead, but #21 Butler responded with a pair of goals before halftime to give the visiting Bulldogs a 2-1 victory over the Braves, Tuesday night at Shea Stadium.
Stockdale's goal was the third of his career and first as a Brave, coming off an assist from junior Chris Cutshaw (Carmel, Ind./Carmel H.S.) in the 21st minute. Cutshaw forced a Butler turnover with pressure near the top of the box, allowing Stockdale to control a loose ball in front of Butler goalkeeper Nick Hegeman. Stockdale's shot bounced past a diving Hegeman into the lower left corner of the net for a 1-0 Bradley lead.
The visitors found the equalizer less than 13 minutes later when junior forward Boris Gatzky dribbled his way through Bradley's back line from nearly 30 yards away to send a shot past Bradley freshman goalkeeper Kyle Orne (Phoenix, Ariz./Desert Vista H.S.) in the 34th minute. The tally was Gatzky's third of the season.
Butler netted the game-winning goal with 3:37 remaining in the first half on Ben Sippola's third goal of the season. Sippola's twisting shot attempt at the top of the box was deflected by a Bradley defender, bouncing past Orne into the left side of the net for a 2-1 Butler advantage. Gatzky assisted on the strike.
Trailing 2-1 in the second half, the Braves kept pressure on the Bulldogs but were unable to convert an opportunity to force a tie. Sophomore Rudy Garcia's (Peoria, Ill./Notre Dame H.S.) shot from near the top of the box in the 71st minute was stopped by Hegeman, who made another save to preserve the Butler advantage when he caught a shot attempt from Bradley freshman Christian Meza (Carpentersville, Ill./Dundee-Crown H.S.) with just 3:16 remaining in the game.
Orne, making his first collegiate appearance, stopped five shots on goal for the Braves. Hegeman stopped three shots in the victory, only allowing Stockdale's goal.
The loss ends Bradley's nine-game home schedule with a 2-6-1 record. The Braves will finish the 2008 regular season with a pair of road matches, starting with 1 p.m. kickoff at Evansville this Sunday to conclude the Missouri Valley Conference portion of the schedule. Bradley will close out the regular season Saturday, Nov. 8 at Central Arkansas.
