No. 9 St. John’s Blanks Butler, 1-0

Saturday, September 28

Indianapolis, Ind. (Sellick Bowl)

7 p.m.

St. John's University

8-1-0, 2-0-0

Butler

4-4-0, 0-2-0

St. John's

Butler

Tani Oluwaseyi took five of the team's 21 shots. Xavier had just five total shots all evening.

9/28/2019 9:42:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Jan Hoffelner records first solo clean sheet as St. John’s improves to 8-1-0

By: Andrew O'Connell

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 28, 2019) – Looking to rebound from its first loss of the season earlier in the week, the St. John's men's soccer team went on the road and remained perfect in BIG EAST play with a 1-0 victory over Butler at the Sellick Bowl on Saturday night.

Jan Hoffelner became the first St. John's keeper to play a full game this year, making a season-high three saves and anchoring the Red Storm to its fifth clean sheet of the campaign. In addition to the three stops with which he was credited, Hoffelner also made a number of plays that were not reflected on the score sheet. The junior from Frankfurt helped clear several Butler chances late in the game with the Johnnies clinging to a one-goal lead.

Tani Oluwaseyi provided all the offense the Red Storm (8-1-0, 2-0-0) would need, finding the back of the net in the 35^th minute with the help of an assist from Skage Simonsen. Oluwaseyi's goal marked his fourth of the year, tying him with Niko Petridis for the team lead and matching his total from all of 2018 in just the team's ninth game. Simonsen's fourth assist of the campaign also matched his season-long total from a year ago.

In total, 13 of the Red Storm's 19 goals this season have now come from members of the sophomore class.

St. John's outshot Butler (4-4-0, 0-2-0 BIG EAST) on the match by a margin of 9-7, including a 4-3 edge in shots on goal. The Red Storm also earned eight corners to the Bulldogs' four. Just four nights prior to welcoming St. John's, Butler hosted and defeated No. 5 Indiana, a team that advanced to last season's College Cup.

Following a back-and-forth start to the contest, St. John's jumped ahead in the 35^th minute. Simonsen began the sequence with a through ball intended for Oluwaseyi just outside the top of the box. Anticipating the feed, Oluwaseyi stayed onside before bursting ahead and shaking his defender to track down the loose ball. Oluwaseyi then took possession before forcing the Butler keeper to the ground and tip-toeing around his fallen foe for a wide-open goal.

Oluwaseyi recorded two more spectacular chances early in the second half. In the 48th minute, he chipped a Petridis cross just over the bar, narrowly missing his second goal in the span of just 15 minutes. Less than 10 minutes later in the 56^th, Oluwaseyi corralled another long pass from Simonsen and shook a few defenders before sending a left-footed blast on cage, but Gabriel Gjergji punched it over the bar and preserved the one-goal St. John's lead.

Butler sent everything it had at St. John's in the closing minutes, but Hoffelner and the Red Storm held their ground. In addition to an acrobatic save on Wilmer Cabrera Jr. in the 60th minute, Hoffelner also came off his line on a number of occasions and helped clear Butler threats in the St. John's zone.

A number of other Johnnies also played key roles in the Red Storm's first clean sheet in four games. Matt Chandler, Johan Aquilon, Rafael Bustamante, Brandon Knapp, Brandon Duarte and Einar Lye all logged a full 90 minutes for St. John's.

The Red Storm will return to action on Friday night, wrapping a three-match road stand with Marquette in Milwaukee. The game, which is set to kick off at 8 p.m. ET, will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network.