Men's Soccer: #4/#2 Marquette 1, Northern Illinois 0

he rain started shortly after kickoff and lasted throughout the match, giving Marquette two opponents last night. They were able to prevail over both, as Andy Huftalin scored his team leading seventh goal and second straight game winner to give the Golden Eagles a 1-0 win over Northern Illinois.

The weather had a noticeable impact on the game as players tried to make quick or sudden attacks with the ball, but lost their footing. Marquette was able to control possession for most of the game and keep the offensive pressure on (13 corner kicks compared to none for NIU), but when the Huskies had a chance to counter attack, it was almost always a good chance deep into Marquette's end. That kept the shot total close (Marquette with a 16-10 advantage) and kept MU keeper Charlie Lyon busy. Lyon was especially busy in the second half, making three saves that all came with the score tied.

As the second half progressed, it became more apparent that MU was on the verge of scoring. Each successive try seemed closer and closer to finding the back of the net. Then in the 80th minute, Bryan Ciesiulka played a ball forward for Huftalin, who eluded a defender and rifled the ball into the back of the net to give MU all the scoring they would need.

You can check out highlights from the match including Huftalin's goal here.

Up Next: Big East play is back on the schedule, starting on Saturday afternoon with #10/#14 Georgetown in Washington, D.C.