Ben Deihl | sports editor

The Duquesne men’s soccer team had a tall task ahead of them this weekend, taking on the Saint Louis Billikens. The Dukes kept it close but ultimately fell in a 1-0 conference matchup at Rooney Field on Saturday.

The Billikens took control of the game early, leading with possession and scoring just seven minutes into the game. The goal was courtesy of St. Louis’ Theo Franca, who scored off of a juggled save attempt by Duquesne goalie Diego Chavez.

Chavez dove to corral a shot from Andrew Heckenlaible, but lost control of the ball on his way to the ground. Franca was at the right place at the right time, hitting the ball from directly in front of the net for the match’s only goal.

The start of the game was largely controlled by the Billikens, with the majority of the first 20 minutes being played in Duquesne’s defensive zone. The Dukes struggled early with St. Louis’ press defense, giving them no room to breathe.

“You can’t start slow against anybody, much less a team of their caliber,” Duquesne Head Coach Chase Brooks said.

Duquesne responded to the press by moving the ball slowly and methodically, prioritizing ball control over aggressive play setups. This allowed the Dukes to slow the Billikens attack and balance the control of the game.

A byproduct of the Billikens’ aggressiveness was their foul efficiency, collecting 10 corner kicks across the contest, while also benefitting from four yellow cards and a red card on Duquesne.

The corners consistently kept the ball in Duquesne’s territory, tiring out Duke defenders with the constant, reset offensive pressure.

“Nobody cares that you’re tired,” Brooks said. “You just have to perform. That’s what this level is.”

Junior Tyler Kato was shown a yellow card 12 minutes before halftime, the first of Duquesne’s foul trouble. An extra pressure push from Duquesne turned up no points, and the Billikens entered the half clinging to a 1-0 lead.

The Dukes flipped the script coming into the second half, immediately putting St. Louis under heavy pressure. Two on-goal shots were fired within the half’s first 10 minutes, with Duquesne just narrowly missing wide left and high.

“We’re an extraordinary team when everything’s clicking and moving in the right direction,” Brooks said.

“But when we were slow to start, or when we’re making foolish fouls. Those things are going to derail anybody.”

Duquesne had four total cards in the second half, three yellows and a red. McIntosh collected Duquesne’s third yellow card of the match when he shoved a Billiken out of bounds following a play.

The flagrant foul right in front of both benches made tempers flare, and a small scuffle gathered as players from both squads defended their teammates.

The second half continued as a tug-of-war match, each team peppering shots and trading possession with one another. The Dukes were consistently putting shots on goal, but St. Louis seemed to muster a defense to every Duquesne move.

The frustration continued to mount for Duquesne, as the team had figured out how to manage the Billikens’ pressure, but was unable to benefit from it.

“I think the first 15 minutes were flat, and they capitalized on that moment,” said team captain Grant McIntosh. “But I think the rest of the game, we showed what we can do. They were on their heels.”

Marko Rasmussen added Duquesne’s fourth yellow card late in the second half, while the Billikens continued to play slow and try to protect their lead.

The last five minutes devolved into a mass scramble for Duquesne, trying their hardest to generate big plays and knot the game.

The desperation almost turned against the Dukes, as St. Louis was able to repel the attacks and had two fast breaks where Chavez had to step up in a one-on-one matchup.

The loss is Duquesne’s first of the season, dropping its record to 5-1-2. Duquesne is far from out of competition, especially after a strong showing against one of the nation’s best teams.

“It’s an unlucky result,” McIntosh said. “But we move on. It’s a valuable piece that we can take with us for the rest of the year.”

Ben Deihl can be reached at deihlb1@duq.edu