Box Score | Season Stats
 
SPRINGFIELD – Emmerich Hoegg scored his 12^th-career game-winning goal to help guide the Missouri State men's soccer team (4-2-1, 1-0 MVC) past the Bradley Braves (2-6-1, 0-2 MVC), 2-1, on Saturday (Sept. 24). With the victory over Bradley, the Bears improve to 12-1-4 at Betty and Bobby Allison South.
 
 "Tonight's match had a lot of stop-and-go play, where there were slow periods of time and quick periods of time," commented head coach Jon Leamy. "The bottom line is that we got three points at home to start league play and that is huge for us. The next two or three games, it will start becoming really important because that will determine how things turn out at the end of the season."
 
The Braves pushed the ball to start the match, forcing MSU goalkeeper, Liam Priestley, to make his first two saves of the night before the 10-minute mark.
 
It wasn't until the 14^th minute of the match that Hoegg started the momentum for the Bears, sending a header just wide of the goal. Less than two minutes later, Hoegg went in for his second shot of the night but the Bradley defense jumped in front to block the shot.
 
In the 19^th minute of the match, MSU's Jake Buckle fired a shot across the box that was meant for teammate Mikey Lightbourne. Bradley's Falk Dennert jumped in front of the pass, heading it into the feet of MSU's Stuart Wilkin. Without hesitation, Wilkin sliced the ball past Bradley's goalkeeper, Logan Ketterer, to give the Bears the early 1-0 lead.
 
Bradley's Richard Olson sought revenge in the 30^th minute of the match, taking a shot from 25 yards out, sending the ball up-and-over the hands of Priestley to the upper-right corner of the net to tie the game at one-all.
 
Hoegg's fourth header of the night would be the last of 10 shots taken by Missouri State in the first half, coming in the 33^rd minute.
 
Priestley's final, and game-winning save of the night, came in the 73^rd minute of the match. The Bears were called for a hand ball in the box to set up a penalty kick for the Braves. Before Bradley's Olson took the shot, two Braves ran into the box, calling-off the made penalty shot by Olson and forcing a re-kick. On Olson's second attempt, MSU's Priestley sprawled out to block the shot and jumped on top to keep the match tied at one apiece.
 
Within the next 10 minutes, Missouri State would make multiple substitutions to try and gain some momentum. In the 85^th minute of the match, MSU's Scott Midgley connected with Hoegg inside the box, who fired his fifth shot of the night past Bradley's Ketterer, to tally his 12^th-career game-winning goal and second goal of the season. Hoegg is now tied for first in MSU program history in career game-winning goals with Matt Caution and Brad Jordan.
 
The Bears will continue Missouri Valley Conference play at Evansville on Saturday (Oct. 1) after traveling to Tulsa on Tuesday (Sept. 27) for a non-conference match-up with the Golden Hurricane at 7 p.m.