Box Score INDIANAPOLIS – Oskar Lenz netted the game winner and added an assist to boost SIUE men's soccer to a season-opening 2-1 win in double overtime at Butler Friday.
"It felt amazing just to be back," SIUE Head Coach Cale Wassermann said. "I am happy for the guys."
Lenz converted from the penalty spot in the 101st minute for the game-winner, the first goal of his career.
"Oskar earned the penalty and he stepped up and he buried it," Wassermann said.
The infraction came just inside the left side of the 18-yard box. As Lenz cut the ball to his right, he was taken down on an aggressive slide.
With the Cougars down 1-0 in the second half, Lenz played the role of the creator on SIUE's first goal in the 75th minute. After taking on a defender, one-on-one, he whipped a cross to the right side, where Seth Korenek flicked it home to level the score at a goal apiece.
"It was a huge boost for us," Wassermann said Korenek's strike.
Playing a game for the first time since November of 2019, the Cougars trailed after a first-half largely controlled by the home team.
"We started a little sloppy, we weren't as sharp as we would have like," Wassermann said. "In the first half they were the better team."
The Bulldogs outshot SIUE 9-3 in the opening period and got on the board in the first half. The Cougars bounced back with five shots in the second half of regulation.
"I was really proud of our mental toughness," Wasserman said. "It was good for us. We made some mistakes and we got exposed but we learned from it."
SIUE used 16 field players in the game.
"Our two goals scorers came off the bench; we got both of our goalkeepers in," Wassermann said. "We have a lot of new players and we got a lot of guys some very valuable experience."
Lluís Martorell started the game for SIUE and played the first half, making five saves. Junior transfer Tor Erik Larsen played the second half and overtime and stopped a penalty kick in the 86th minute, diving low to his left for the stop.
SIUE is next in action Feb. 17 when it faces cross-town rival Saint Louis.
