Delay fails to derail Rio men in opener

Rio Grande Sports Information
     CHICAGO, Ill. - It may have taken a little longer to complete than originally anticipated, but when all was said and done, the University of Rio Grande got the win it was searching for.
     The RedStorm, ranked No. 22 nationally in the NAIA Preseason Coaches' Poll released earlier this week, made a late first half goal stand up in a 1-0 triumph over Saint Xavier University, Thursday night, in non-conference men's soccer action at Deaton Field.
     The contest, which served as the season opener for both squads, was delayed 79 minutes at the start due to a lack of officials. The three-man crew originally scheduled to work the game were given Friday as the date for the matchup.
     Once a replacement trio of adjudicators were secured and the game got underway, a hard-fought physical contest ensued.
     Rio Grande netted what proved to be the game's lone goal with 2:07 remaining in the first half when sophomore Hugo Ferreira (Paris, France) gathered in junior Lucas O'Donnell's (Leeds, England) crossing pass from the left side of the 18-yard box and pushed a shot into the back of the net.
     Prior to the score - and then afterward for the rest of the night - scoring opportunities were few and far between for both teams.
     The RedStorm finished with a 10-7 edge in shots overall, while shots on frame were even at 5-5 and each team had three corner kick tries.
     The two squads also combined for 26 fouls - 14 against the host Cougars and 12 against Rio - and nine yellow card cautions - five to the RedStorm and our to SXU - were issued.
     Rio freshman keeper Samy Hamou (Paris, France) notched a clean sheet in his RedStorm debut, recording two of his four saves inside the final 10 minutes of the match.
Daniel Martinez went the distance in net for Saint Xavier and registered five saves.
     Rio Grande wraps up its Chicagoland road swing on Saturday when it squares off with Trinity Christian College, which posted a 2-0 win over Dordt (Iowa) in its season opener on Thursday.
     Kickoff with the Trolls is scheduled for 2 p.m. EDT at the Schaaf Athletic Complex in Palos Heights, Ill.