Mixed results for men's soccer

Xavier men's soccer traveled to Chicago this weekend to compete in the Lakeside Classic. The Musketeers played No. 13 Northern Illinois as well as Northwestern University, where head coach Andy Fleming previously served as the associate head coach.

The Musketeers began the weekend playing the Huskies of No. 13 Northern Illinois. Xavier and Northern Illinois ended regulation time with a score of 1-1, forcing the game into overtime.

Xavier then scored in overtime to win the game and cause the Huskies their first loss of the season.

"In the big picture, this certainly was a strong week for us as we came from behind and won, put a team away and had a convincing win. [We] beat the No. 13 team in the nation and also got scored on and beat for the first time this year. These experiences allowed us to develop our belief as a team and increased our mental fitness, while also allowing us to evaluate some things, regroup and make sure we are making adjustments and improving in what are still the early stages of the season," Fleming said.

Both of the goals scored by the Musketeers against Northern Illinois came as the first Xavier career goals for two sophomores.

Sophomore Andy Kaplan scored the equalizer to send Xavier into overtime.

Xavier's second goal came from sophomore Gino Depaoli in the 96th minute to win the game.

"Against NIU we competed extremely well and handled what I consider to be one of the nation's most physically challenging teams very well. We scored two great goals and showed a ‘fight and bite' that I had yet to see. It was an emotional and thrilling result," Fleming said.

The game winning goal was set up by junior Luke Spencer and sophomore Matt Walker. The final pass came from Walker to Depaoli.

Xavier's junior goalkeeper Justin Marshall had two saves in 95 minutes of play.

This victory improved the Musketeers to 4-0-0 on the season going into their Sunday game against Northwestern University.

Xavier fell to the Wildcats 2-0 on Sunday, marking their first loss of the season and Northwestern's third win.

"We used quite a bit of fuel on Friday, which led to what I considered to be a sluggish start on Sunday. We allowed two goals off restarts and didn't deal with Northwestern very well once they sat in their shell after getting a 2-0 lead. From myself on down, I don't think many of us had a great day, yet being on the losing end allowed us to tweak some things and get refocused for a chance to bounce back against IUPUI on Thursday," Fleming said.

This game came with special circumstances for Fleming, as he spent three years as the associate head coach for the Wildcats.

"It was a special trip to a special place. The relationships I developed and the experiences, being one of the elite programs in college soccer, playing in the Big 10 at such a wonderful institute are all things that quickly flashed back upon our arrival into Evanston; however, what hit me the most is how much I grew during my time in Chicago. I became a father, took part in a masters program at NU, lived away from the East Coast for the first time and really added a few dimensions to myself as a coach, especially with regards to managing the pulse of a team and having emotional versatility as a leader. I felt that Xavier showed well and I was very proud of the product that we put on the field, with much of it being molded after Northwestern," Fleming said.

Sophomores Nick Hagglund, Depaoli and Kaplan were named to the All-Tournament team. This was the second All-Tournament honor for Hagglund.

Men's soccer will return to action at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Xavier Soccer Complex.