Sunesson Scores Lone Goal for MU in Crucial Win at DePaul

CHICAGO, Illinois – Sophomore striker Lukas Sunesson scored the lone goal of the match as the Marquette University men's soccer team defeated the DePaul Blue Demons, 1-0, in the final game of the 2019 regular season on Wednesday afternoon.

62'| GOALLLL! Cukaj chips a pass diagonally across the pitch, Sunesson chests it down and puts it in the net.

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— Marquette Soccer (@marquettesoccer) November 6, 2019

The Golden Eagles improved to 8-8-1 (4-5-0 BIG EAST) on the year after the result today. They now have to play the waiting game as they sit on the cusp of making the BIG EAST tournament for the second straight season. With Butler's 2-1 victory over Xavier this afternoon, the Golden Eagles postseason hopes are dependent on Seton Hall either playing to a draw or losing to Villanova this evening.

"I'm really proud of the team," MU head coach Louis Bennett said. "This [at DePaul] has been a difficult place to play, but we battled our way through the match to come out on top. Sometimes you can get distracted on other things you can't control, but we kept control of ourselves and found a way to get a much-needed victory."

During a scoreless first half, Christian Marquez and Luka Prpa tallied two shots each for the Golden Eagles, who put three shots on frame as a team in the first 45 minutes. Sophomore goalkeeper Cedrick Stern also had a tremendous save to keep the game tied at zero, redirecting a shot from DU off the crossbar in the 37^th minute.

37'| Cedrik Stern makes a spectacular save to deflect a DePaul scoring opportunity off the cross bar as MU keeps the Blue Demons from breaking a scoreless tie!

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— Marquette Soccer (@marquettesoccer) November 6, 2019

MU finally broke the scoreless tie in the second half off a diagonal pass across the pitch from Manuel Cukaj to Lukas Sunesson, who controlled possession and tapped home his third goal of the season. The lone tally of the game for either team came in the 62nd minute to put MU up 1-0.

The Golden Eagles had two more scoring chances, in the 68^th and 81^st minutes of the game, on shots from Josh Coan and Connor Alba, respectively. Coan's shot was on frame and saved by the DU keeper while Alba's left-footed strike went just wide to the right.

MU outshot DU 17-8 on the afternoon, moving the Golden Eagles to 8-2 this season when outshooting their opponent.

For the first time since 2013, Louis Bennett's squad has won four road games in a season (4-5 in 2019) after Wednesday's win at DePaul. Today's victory at DU marks MU's first win at Wish Field since Nov. 6, 2002, when the team took home a 3-0 victory.

"This win means a lot," Sunesson said. "We stayed calm and composed, and we had a feeling we'd finish a goal-scoring opportunity sooner or later."

UP NEXT:
MU will now await the results of tonight's game between Seton Hall and Villanova. With a SHU loss or draw, the Golden Eagles will earn the sixth and final spot in the BIG EAST tournament. MU would play on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 11 a.m. CT at No. 3-seeded Providence in the quarterfinals of the tournament if it gets in.

Keep up with the Marquette men's soccer program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteSoccer) and Instagram (@MarquetteSoccer) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteSoccer).

MU head coach Louis Bennett (@Loobe21) recaps his team's road win over DePaul on Wednesday afternoon.

The win marks MU's fourth road victory of the season and first win at DU since Nov. 6, 2002.#WeAreMarquette | #MarquetteSoccer pic.twitter.com/kbusaOs3PK
— Marquette Soccer (@marquettesoccer) November 6, 2019