Butler men’s soccer clinches Big East regular season title with win over Marquette

Senior midfielder Eric Leonard controls the ball against Villanova. The Bulldogs clinched a Big East regular season title on Oct. 28. Photo by Jimmy Lafakis.

JOSHUA DOERING | ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR | jdoering@butler.edu

The Butler men’s soccer team used a quick burst at the start of the second half to earn a 2-1 victory over Marquette University. With their 7-1 conference record, the team has clinched the outright Big East regular season championship for the first time in program history.

The first half featured plenty of action and the teams combined for 18 shots before halftime. While Marquette outshot the Bulldogs 10-8, both teams had three shots on goal and Butler had the better scoring chances.

Junior defender Joe Moulden’s header in the 47th minute off of the corner kick from sophomore midfielder Lewis Suddick put the Bulldogs on the board. It was Moulden’s first goal of his Butler career.

Less than a minute later, Suddick’s pass found sophomore forward Brandon Guhl, who put the ball in the back of the net for the tenth time this season. Suddick’s two assist night gave him seven for the year.

Five minutes after the goals, redshirt senior goalie Eric Dick made consecutive saves to deny the Golden Eagles two great scoring chances. The first one deflected off Dick’s hand, onto the post, and back to a Marquette player, who forced Dick to make another save.

Connor Alba’s rocket from the edge of the box brought Marquette back to within one in the 72nd minute. The Golden Eagles went on the attack in search of an equalizer but were unable to find one.

Marquette finished the match with 20 shots compared to only 11 for the Bulldogs. Dick made eight saves on the night, a season-high.

With one game remaining, Butler stands at 11-4-1 on the year. The Bulldogs will host Xavier University on Wednesday, Nov. 1 in their regular season finale. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

 

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