No. 24 DRAKE 2, WESTERN ILLINOIS 1
DES MOINES, Iowa - Senior Garrett Webb'S game-winning tally at the 7:44 mark lifted the 24th-rated Drake men's soccer team to its first-ever NCAA Tournament win with a 2-1 triumph over Western Illinois on Thursday at the Cownie Soccer Complex.

The win established a new school record for victories for Drake and improved the Bulldogs to 14-6-2, while the Leathernecks saw their record-breaking campaign end at 8-10-2.

Drake made its defining statement coming out of the gate in its first-ever home tournament contest as senior Brian Wurst needled a pass through the box that a diving senior Kevin Shrout headed into the net to beat Western Illinois goalkeeper Stephen Paterson to the lower right corner for his fourth goal of the year at the 3:31 mark.

Scoring what proved to be the game-winning tally in the eighth minute (7:44) was Webb, who leaped high above the Leatherneck defense to win a serve from junior Nick Foster and earn his team- and conference-best 12th goal on the year with a header to give Drake a 2-0 lead.

The Bulldogs scored on their first two shots of the contest but Western Illinois cultivated its own scoring opportunities as Drake held a slim 9-8 advantage in shots in the first half.

Controlling tempo in the final 45 minutes was the Bulldogs' mission was and it held serve until they were whistled for a foul in the box that set up a Husref Jupic, a Des Moines, Iowa, native, for a penalty kick at the 78:15 mark.  Jupic converted and cut the margin to 2-1.

Despite Western Illinois making the game tighter than Drake had hoped with its play over the final 12 minutes, the Bulldogs held on for the victory.

Drake garnered an 18-16 margin in shots led by a game-high six shots from Shrout.  Jupic and Kevin Hinds paced the Leathernecks with three shots apiece.  The Bulldogs also received three, two, two and two shots, respectively, from Webb, Wurst, senior Luke Gorczyca and junior Matt Kuhn.

Paterson pulled in four saves for Western Illinois, while his counterpart redshirt junior Michael Drozd registered two saves for the Bulldogs.

The victory was highlighted by the play of Drake's seniors who elevated the Bulldogs to new heights over the past four seasons, including their second triumph of the season over Western Illinois.  The Bulldogs had posted a 1-0 road win in Macomb, Ill., on Oct. 7.

The seniors and the rest of the Bulldogs look to continue their season with their next challenge as Drake battles fourth-seeded and No. 13 Ohio State (12-4-4) on Sunday (Nov. 22).  Game time at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, is slated for 12:00 p.m. CST.