Box Score MILWAUKEE, Wis. (11/7/2014) -- The University of Detroit Mercy men's soccer team earned a share of the Horizon League regular-season title Friday night after wrapping up the regular season with a 2-0 loss at Milwaukee. The Titans (6-2 Horizon League) and Oakland (5-0-3 HL) both finished the season with 18 points to share the regular-season crown.
It's the second regular-season title for Detroit in the past three seasons as the Titans were the outright champions in 2012. Detroit had the most wins in the league with six, but Oakland accumulated 18 points on five wins and three ties and based on the Golden Grizzles overtime victory in the regular season meeting, the Titans will be No. 2 seed in the upcoming Horizon League Championship with an automatic bye to the semifinals. Oakland is the No. 1 seed and will host semifinals and championship.
The Titans out-shot the Panthers, 20-10, during the match Friday, but were unable to get on the scoreboard. Detroit nearly scored first as senior
Matt Ybarra (Irvine, Calif. / Ann Arbor Huron) had a header go off the crossbar in the fifth minute of the match.
Milwaukee scored in the 17th minute off a throw-in near the corner of the field. The goal by UWM's Petter Ingebrigtsen gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead and was the lone score in the first half. Detroit was credited with 10 shots in the first 45 minutes, bed by eight apiece from freshman
Spiro Pliakos (Rochester Hills, Mich. / Rochester) and Ybarra.
Detroit continued to get shots off in the second half, but the Panthers added an insurance marker in the 70th minute of the match on Reid Stevenson's goal from Kyle Neumann.
The Titans had five shots and three corner kicks in the final 20 minutes of the match, but the contest finished in a 2-0 advantage for the Panthers.
Pliakos was credited with a game-high six shots on goal, while Ybarra finished with five shots. Detroit had an edge in shots (20-10) and corner kicks (4-2) for the match, while Laurie Bell led Milwaukee with five shots.
The Titans (9-6-4 overall), ranked No. 9 in the most recent regional rankings, will reach the Horizon League semifinal round for the second time in three years. Detroit will next play on Thursday against the highest remaining seed from the quarterfinal round. The match will be played in Rochester on the campus of Oakland University.
